Triquetra
by ButterflyMiko
Summary: Chaos and Cosmos created the universe together. After many mistakes and betrayals, they were seperated when Chaos fell in love with Loki, breaking a sacred law and causing a rift between the sisters. Now years later they have been reborn as sisters, though they remain unknown to their identities as goddesses or their pasts. As Cosmos finds love first time she begins to understand.
1. Promises of Future Past

**Present Day**

**Galaxy Cauldron**

Light does not always equate to good. Darkness does not always equate to evil.

Two lone figures stood on what was left of the last planet in this Galaxy; the final battle between the foes had been so fierce that nothing living or inanimate was safe.

One figure was bathed in light, wearing pure white, her bright glow waved in the power building up around her; she cast a long shadow on the terra. Cosmos had long white hair. Her dress was short and it had a white collar, short yellow sleeves with wings, and multicolored ribbons in the middle of the skirt underneath a broach that looks like the broach that she wears below her collar. Both of the broaches had a yellow star on them and wings attached to the right and left sides, with the broach above the multicolored ribbons having two white ribbons coming out of it. Her footwear consisted of white high-heeled shoes with wings. Additionally, her accessories consists of the aforementioned broaches, white rings on each of her fingers (except for her thumbs), white earrings, a tiara with white beads and a yellow star in the middle, a white choker with a yellow star in the middle, and white barrettes. She also donned a long white cape.

The other figure was cocooned in darkness, from her dress to the frightening void that swirled all around her, she cast no shadow in the dying land. Chaos had long black hair going down to her feet, onyx eyes and reddish brown skin. On her forehead she has a black star with a black feather through it and her earrings were red triangles. She wore a brown black leather dress with a black corseted front, her collar and boots shared the same brown colour. She had black feathery crow wings and similar feathers on her shoulders.

"I'll stop you! I can't give up!" The warrior in white cried at her foe.

Her foe showed no fear or emotion at the decree.

"My creations…" The white clad woman wept openly. "All gone, because of YOU! Your EVIL ends HERE!" She screamed and clasped her hands over her breast.

The mistress of the inkiness was not moved by the others accusations.

The energy around the warrior of light charged the air, and the light around her became brighter, she prayed to all the goodness in the world, she prayed on the souls of her creations. As she did this other powers of light in this world and on the other side joined with her. Her white light was joined by a prismatic splash of colors of all hues. Finally she let this final power go and it hit the dark woman engulfing her. When the attack was expended Cosmos fell backwards; her life force drained.

The brilliance dimmed, and the blackness remained. The other warrior finally moved, slowly she walked over to the others' downed form.

Eyes of sapphire blue looked down and into those of pale grey; there was no malice in her gaze, only pity. "You still don't understand, sister."

"Just kill me, so I can be with by creations again." Cosmos huffed. "You win; you can destroy the Universe like you've always wanted to."

Chaos shook her head. "I did not destroy this Galaxy; we did because you still do not understand." She then sat down. "As for the Universe, it will grow and expand like always, some parts will flourish, and other parts will wilt and die." The void seemed to pulse outwards, but it got no bigger. "Which creations do you mean? The ones you had and sacrificed to become what you are now, or the ones from before?"

"Just let me die." Cosmos sighed, he was in no mood to by toyed with.

Chaos was unaffected by the other's demands. "You say it like it is some sort of final end to everything. Is that how you see it now? Is that why you did what you did?

"I didn't want anyone to die; I just wanted everyone to be happy." Cosmos looked away.

Chaos shook her head. "That is not the way of the Universe; you know that. Everything lives, and then dies, and returns to the ether."

"I just wanted…happiness forever." Cosmos was unrelenting. "To be the light…in everyone's life."

Chaos looked grim. "You regained your light, but you did not truly understand the brilliance of it. You are like an earthen moth trying to embrace fire." Chaos placed her palm on Cosmos's brow.

The warrior in white stiffened not at the touch, but at the memories. They flooded in, lives she had lived, and the grim ends. More tears flowed as she relieved in seconds several lifetimes; she felt her consciousness ebbing. The warrior started to whimper.

Chaos talked as Cosmos suffered through her memories. "We tried to make you remember, but every life you failed to see beyond you. As a Star, Planet, and more, you made the same mistakes that led you back to similar ends." Chaos smiled. "You've always been stubborn; a little dense, afraid of the dark, and at the mercy of your emotions." The dark warrior then sighed.

Cosmos's breaths came in gasps and hitches; she looked at Chaos, all at once she understood everything and nothing at all. Her mind could not process all that he had remembered, seen, and felt.

Chaos removed her hand and stood up. "Maybe this time you'll get it, and balance will be restored, I am hopeful but the others not so much." She sighed once more. "We are connected; two sides of the same coin, not opposites, but pieces that make a greater whole." She looked off into the void she loved so dearly. "Please try to understand."

The woman clad in dark matter nodded and tendrils slithered out and wrapped around Cosmos; and in seconds the one called goddess was no more. All that remained was an eight pointed star shaped prismatic crystal; Chaos held out her hand and let the gem hover over her palm for a moment. She then lifted it to the vastness of space and watched it as it flew off to return to the Galaxy Cauldron; she blew a kiss at it when it was just no more than a glint in the distance.

"Do you really think she can heal herself? She's lived so many lives, and still she is cuckolded by this whole good and evil nonsense." A figure stated as she moved up behind Chaos.

Chaos nodded. "She is the youngest and has much to bear; she needs time, and guidance. Eventually she'll understand again, and we will be aligned." The gods in dark colors looked out to the Universe. "She does not believe in herself, and that is why she lost her mind in the first place. We need to be patient, and hope she'll realize in her heart who she really is meant to be."

"What do we do in the mean time?" The figure asked as she gestured to the four other figures standing near the void.

Chaos thought about it, and then came up with an idea.

She turned to the others behind her. "Iron Man, tell the others I have a plan, and this time we'll need everyone's help. Perhaps together we can help him to find his way."

Iron Man, the one who knew Cosmos best before she had lost her way, nodded; in a flash of lightning he was gone.

Chaos looks at the others standing near her Void. "Loki, Thor, Captain America, Hawkeye, and Hulk come closer, here's what we'll do."

Chaos conferred with the other warriors on ways to help Cosmos regain her mind. It would be an elaborate stage with happy endings, and sad dramatic middles. The stage was set in the far reaches of the Universe, on a small bumpkin planet called Earth, starring Cosmos reborn as a human prophet. Cosmos's old family played their parts and left clues along the way wishing that this revolution of the wheel would be the last. They hoped that soon they would have Cosmos back to her old self, and the Universe would be healed once more.

Miraculous Tragedy

"We mustn't keep meeting like this. Communication between the people of the Asgard and the Midgard is forbidden. It is the way of the gods. We mustn't fall in love . . . But it's already too late."

A thousand years ago in a small meadow a man and woman sat together. The man was tall with raven hair that went passed his shoulders. His pale skin contrasted with his hazel green eyes and thin light pink lips. His hunter green tunic blew lightly in the breeze. The woman that sat in his arms had long black hair and dark eyes and reddish brown skin. She wore a blue sleeveless top with white beads and a long grey dress. She also wore earrings with white beads.

He pulled her close and smiled as her hair brushed his neck. She nestled her head against his chest and sighed. They sat under a large cherry blossom tree and were surrounded by additional trees, red and silver roses bloomed on various bushes, and the green grass was slightly damp like a meadow on a spring morning. There was a light breeze that blew rustling his hair and causing her onyx strands to dance with his. It was a forbidden embrace but they didn't care, at this moment they were the only two people in the universe. The woman sighed again and the man spoke as he stroked her hair, his voice was silky and elegant. "Penny for your thoughts my dear?"

The woman removed her head from his chest and looked up at him. Their eyes met. She smiled that smile that always made his heart beat a bit faster. He smiled back at her and she was glad she was already sitting because his smile always made her weak in the knees. His eyes looked down at her with deep love in them but she always noticed a twinkle of mischief. Her eyes were such a striking deep onyx, the color of night that he always found himself drowning in them. She moved some of his hair out of his eyes as she spoke. "I was thinking about the first time you appeared to me in this place."

He leaned down and gently kissed the top of her head. She laid her head back down on his chest. "I thought I had wondered off into a dream and you were an angel."

She laughed and lifted her head to face him again. "Angel? I hardly think that is the case. You know that I am a goddess."

He looked at her seriously. "You will always be so much more than that to me. I have never felt as accepted, complete and peaceful as I do when I'm with you."

He kissed the dark star mark on her forehead feeling the warmth of it on his lips. When they parted she laid her head back on his chest. "I am content to stay like this forever but you know if they find out they will never allow it..." She looked up at him and her face changed from content and happy to fearful and sad "...if they find out you are here..."

The man put his slender finger to her pink lips. "We mustn't think of such things. When our secret comes to light it will be too late and..."

"Then let us leave this place, now." She pleaded pulling herself up out of his lap and grabbing his hand forcing him to stand as she started to walk put his arms around her waist and pulled her close to him so she was facing him. She always felt small under his broad frame. He put a gentle hand on her cheek. "You know there is nothing I would like more but I still have a few more preparations to make. We do not want to go only to have…"

Suddenly the meadow was bathed in a flash of silver lightening and a loud crack of thunder. Followed by a bright flash of rainbow light. The once bright and happy meadow was plunged into darkness. The man stood, his clothes began to change and in their place he wore shining gold armor that covered his chest and arms. A hunter green cape flowed behind him and gold horned helmet covered his head. He stood protectively in front of the woman. Before them stood the only two people they feared, the ones that could threaten the happiness they had found with each other. The man who appeared by rainbow light was older with long silver hair and beard. He wore golden armor with a red cape flying behind him and a gold horned helmet. His right eye was covered by a golden eye patch. Gungnir his golden spear glowed threateningly in his left hand. When he spoke his voiced boomed with anger. "Loki Odinson…"

Loki looked at Odin and spoke quietly. "How did you know where I was…"

Odin bellowed in anger. "Did you think you could hide from his sight forever?"

Loki looked confused at first. Then cursed as realization of his mistake hit him. In his rush to return to her he had forgotten to conceal himself from their watcher. He cleared his throat to speak again as he felt his love shiver with fear behind him and tightened her grip on his arm. "All father please we lo…"

Odin raised Gungnir threateningly. "Enough!"

The woman standing beside Odin was Cosmos. She had long, wavy, hair which was golden orange and gradated into a bright red. She wore a soft lime green dress that reached down to her feet. She had red eyes.

Cosmos had changed much since her Fall. And this Earth was her jurisdiction. Chaos had chosen not to interfere, and thus had made it taboo, to her own downfall: she had fallen in love.

Cosmos' facial expression was triumphant but her voice was no less harsh as she looked at the woman behind Loki. "Chaos you have broken a taboo. You both have risked war and death on your worlds. By your own vow, Chaos, you must be separated. You..." She pointed to Loki "...will depart from this land and never return. I, Cosmos, Empress of Kinmoku-sei, capital of this Galaxy, order you to forget her as she belongs in the Otherworld, a place of solitude that she chose..."

Loki was about to speak in protest but before he could Chaos jumped out from behind him and stood in front of him like a fierce lioness, her voice hard as she spoke. "I did not choose my solitude! You thrust it upon me when you betrayed me, sister! You will not banish me from the universe that I helped to create! I have found my kindred spirit in Loki and I will never love another as I love him."

"You create nothing but darkness and pain." Cosmos bit back. "Evil is born and wars begun because you exist. That is why I must end the cycle here."

Cosmos looked to Odin and nodded sadly. "Since you refuse to follow our request willingly..." Odin's angry voice bellowed through the meadow.

"We will not leave you with a choice." Cosmos finished. A round silver crystal appeared in her hands and began to glow bright. She closed her eyes as Odin spoke "Heimdall, Return us to Asgard!"

As soon as he mentioned the watchers name Loki threw two throwing knives at them from his belt as a distraction and grabbed Chaos hand. Together they tried to run towards the silver portal that had brought him here. Lightening cracked and just before the couple reached their destination they were ripped away from one another. Loki was consumed by rainbow light while Chaos started to glow silver. Their hands barely touched as they screamed the others name.

The last of her that Loki saw was her body collapsing in on itself and crystallizing into a single grey gem in the shape of a lotus flower. In another moment the six petals of the flower separated and changed to different colors.

The colored stones flew off into space, and the single grey stone flew far, far, in the direction Loki knew to be the Galaxy Cauldron.

"Loki . . . You are my first love. My only love. Even if we're reborn in another life, we'll find each other. And then . . . We'll fall in love again . . ."


	2. First Contact

**Lawrence, Kansas**

There was the blackness of space, beautiful and mysterious, strewn with a billion stars. Atop a building, a wrought-iron sign - a giant spinning sword - spun listlessly in the wind as a swirling breeze kicked up. A hint of what was to come.

A main street extended in this one-horse town, set amid endless flat, arid scrubland. A large SUV slowly moved down the street and heads out of town.

The SUV sat parked in the desert. Suddenly, the roof panels of the SUV folded open. The underside of the panels housed a variety of hand-built astronomical equipment, which now pointed at the sky.

Kurisuta Selvig popped her head through the roof. Kuri had long straight hair with bits of hair framed inward towards her face. There was a split in the middle of her widow's peak and she let a streak of hair on both sides frame her face in front of her shoulders. Her eyes were blue and her skin was pale. She had a star shaped birthmark on her forehead, a little to the right. She wore a gold pentacle around her neck.

"Hurry!" Kurisuta said. "This is where I saw the shooting star!"

She positioned one of her father's magnetometers, so its monitor calibrated with the constellations above. It appears to be cobbled together from spare parts of other devices.

There was a loud BANG followed by muffled cursing from below. Kurisuta offered a hand down to Erik Selvig, her father, who emerged as well, rubbing his head.

"Oh- watch your head, Dad." Kurisuta said. "So what's this "anomaly" of yours supposed to look like?"

"It's a little different each time. Once it looked like, I don't know, melted stars, pooling in a corner of the sky. But last week it was a rolling rainbow ribbon-" Erik said.

"Racing "˜round Orion?" I've always said you should have been a poet." Kurisuta said.

Kurisuta reigned in her excitement. She tried for dignity.

"Hey, sis. Pass up the bubbly and my gloves, will you?" Kurisuta said.

Reiko Hikawa handed Kurisuta a bottle of Champagne and a pair of gloves through the window. Reiko looked like Kurisuta in the face and body shape, but that's where the similarities ended. Her hair was fierce red, and her eyes were bright green and her skin was even paler than her sister's, with a smattering of freckles.

Kurisuta passed the champagne to Selvig to hold while she pulled on the old gloves - too small for her hands. He started to unwrap the foil, and she stopped his hand with an excited grin.

"Not until you see it!" Kurisuta said.

"I recognize those." Erik said about the gloves. "Think how proud she'd be to see you now. Kurisuta's grin faded to a sad smile.

"Thank you." Kurisuta said.

"For what?" Erik said.

"The benefit of the doubt." Kurisuta said.

The two stared out at the sky expectantly. A long beat while they scanned the skies. Nothing. Kurisuta was worried.

"It's never taken this long before." Selvig said.

Rei called up from the front seat. "Can I turn on the radio?"

"Sure, if you like rocking out to KFRM, "All agriculture, all the time." Worried, Kurisuta headed back down into the vehicle.

The SUV was bathed in the glow of high-tech monitoring equipment and laptops, some looking like they're held together with duct tape. Kurisuta opened a well-worn notebook of handwritten notes and calculations. Selvig watched the frustrated Kurisuta with sympathy.

"The anomalies are always precipitated by geomagnetic storms." Kurisuta said.

She showed him a complicated chart she'd drawn in the book, tracking occurrences and patterns.

"The last seventeen occurrences have been predictable to the minute... I just don't understand." Selvig said.

Something caught Rei's eye out the driver's side mirror. She adjusted it. In the distance, odd glowing clouds formed in the skies over the Northeastern end of the desert.

"Sister?" Rei said.

Kurisuta shushed her, leafed through her notes. The bottle of champagne began to vibrate.

"There's got to be some new variable... Or an equipment malfunction..." Selvig said.

The lights and equipment in the SUV began to flicker around them. The computer monitors squelched with static.

"I don't think there's anything wrong with your equipment..." Rei said.

The champagne bottle started to rattle noisily now as it shook more violently. Kurisuta and Selvig noticed.

"They watch it curiously, pressure building up inside it, when the cork exploded out of it. Champagne went spewing everywhere - over equipment, over Kurisuta.

"Sis?" Rei said.

"What?!" Kurisuta said.

"I think you want to see this." Rei said.

Rei pointed out the window. Kurisuta and Selvig looked out. Over the desert - massive clouds of rainbow light churned in the sky. The three stared, dumbfounded.

"Holy. Shatner." Kurisuta said."That's your "subtle" aurora?!"

"No- yes! Let's go!" Selvig said.

"The roof panels still open, the SUV raced towards the strange event, Kurisuta, amazed by the sight, stood with half her body out the roof, taking video of the light storm before them. The SUV hit a bump. Kurisuta nearly flew out. Selvig grabbed her, yanking her back in.

Kurisuta grinned, thrilled, pumped with adrenaline.

"Isn't this great?!" A thought struck her. "You're seeing it too, right? I'm not crazy?"

"That's debatable. Put your seat belt on!" Selvig said.

The SUV lurched.

Winds howled around the SUV now. Up ahead, spiraling down from out of the clouds came -an enormous tornado, suffuse with the strange rainbow light, roaring like thousand freight trains as it touches down.

Selvig looked up through the still-open sunroof at the enormous glowing funnel cloud with wonder. Kurisuta clambered into the front seat, beside Rei. She leaned way out the window, taping the storm.

"You've gotta get us closer so I can take a magnetic reading." Selvig said.

"Yeah, right! Good one!" Rei laughed at first, then realized. "Oh God, you're serious..."

"Are you my daughter or aren't you?" Selvig said.

The SUV tore across a field towards the tornado, Kurisuta leaning out the window, taping the event. The SUV disturbed two ravens perched on a cactus as they race past. The birds took flight, when - KRAKABOOM! A huge ice storm struck down through the center of the funnel cloud before them with a terrifying intensity.

The SUV rocked from the blast. Rei had enough. She turned the wheel, started to head away.

"What are you doing?!" Kurisuta asked.

"Saving our lives!" Rei replied.

Kurisuta grabbed the wheel, jerked it hard the other way. They struggled for control, when the headlights fall on -a man directly in their path, stumbling through the winds. Rei slammed on the brakes, Kurisuta turned the wheel hard to avoid him. The SUV swerved - but too late.

The side of the SUV slams into the man with a thud, sending him flying. The car skidded to a stop.

Kurisuta, Rei, and Selvig traded shocked looks, breathing hard. They peered through the dust clouds, unable to see through.

A paralyzed moment, then they all leapt out of the car.

The three raced from the SUV with flashlights. Kurisuta spotted the man lying on the ground. He was dressed in tattered clothing, charred and blackened.

"I think that was legally your fault." Rei said.

"Get the first aid kit." Kurisuta said.

Rei headed back inside the SUV as Kurisuta, concerned, knelt next to the man. Selvig hovered, protectively.

She gently turned his head to the light, and she saw him clearly for the first time. He was magnificently handsome, with raven hair that went passed his shoulders. His pale skin contrasted with his hazel green eyes and thin light pink lips. His tattered clothes were all in green.

Kurisuta cupped her hands around his face, as if willing the life back into him.

"Come on. Do me a favor and don't be dead, okay? Open your eyes and look at me." Kurisuta whispered.

Suddenly, he groaned, and she's startled, then relieved, as his eyes fluttered open. She looks deep into his confused, dark blue eyes, which at last focused on her own. Locking onto them, for a moment, they each forget to breathe.

The connection was broken as Rei returned with the kit. She froze when she saw how gorgeous the man was.

"Wow. Does he need CPR? Because I know CPR." Rei said.

A flustered Kurisuta smoothed her hair and sat back on her heels. She looked up at Selvig.

"His eyes-" Kurisuta began.

"-are beautiful." Rei said dreamily.

"-are dilating. That's a good sign." Kurisuta said.

"We still have to get him to a hospital." Selvig said.

"After we get a reading on the storm?" Kurisuta said hopefully.

"Immediately, Kurisuta." Selvig said.

Kurisuta sighed and nodded, regretfully watching the storm evaporate above their heads. A thought struck her. "Where did he come from?"

They exchanged puzzled looks.


	3. Heimdall's Wedding

**Asgard**

Beautiful beyond imagination. There was magnificent landscape of the Realm, through the gleaming capital city, modern yet timeless.

The palace rose countless stories tall, gleaming with an other-worldly majesty, towering high above the Realm sprawled out before it.

In a large window of the palace, a figure stood. Odin Allfather stared out at his kingdom. The ravens flew up to the balcony, and landed at his side.

Odin turns away from the window. His wife Frigga sat at a vanity and tried different earrings before the mirror.

"Are you ready?" Odin asked. "I never thought this day would come."

Frigga smiled. "We should be happy for Heimdall. I am glad you allowed them to be together at last. Perhaps you will reconsider—"

"No," Odin's voice was hard, final. "You know I have no wish to see my son so very unhappy. But if I were to go against my word and that goddess were to reappear—Asgard would be doomed."

Odin stopped, noticing his hand shaking. It seemed to be out of synch temporally with the rest of the world, leaving a trail as it moved. He stared at it determinedly, concentrating, trying to stop the strange event through the force of his sheer will.

Finally, the occurrence subsided, his hand normal once more. A worried Frigga covered his hand with her own.

"...if we only had more time." Odin said.

"For once, our son needs something we cannot provide." Frigga said sadly.

"I can fight it a little longer..." Odin said.

"No. You've put it off too long! I worry for you." Frigga said.

He touched her cheek.

"I've destroyed demons and monsters, devastated whole worlds, laid waste to mighty kingdoms, and still you worry for me?" Odin said.

"Always." Frigga said.

"Not today. Now come kiss your king..." Odin said.

He pulled her close, and they kissed.

**Dining Hall**

Directly under the throne room, a gloomily lit hall. Banners hung on either side to form a corridor down the middle of the fire lit room.

Giant doors opened at one end. A huge figure silhouetted against the bright light beyond walked forward. This was the God of Thunder. Hammer in hand, he reached the end of a raised platform.

An attendant handed Thor a goblet of wine. He downed it quickly, hurled it towards the fire directly below.

"Another!" Thor said.

The cup smashed, the alcohol caused the fire to glow intensely - and, for a moment, brightly lit, and seen full length, was Thor. He was very handsome, with glorious shoulder length blonde hair and blue eyes. He was strong, very muscular, with chiseled features. Every inch a warrior, and king to be.

He proceeds down stopped, and down the center of the Hall.

At the other end, massively shadowed on one of the great banners, was the shape of two great horns. As Thor approaches, the horn shapes moved, and then, from the shadows at the side, emerged Loki, wearing his horned headpiece.

Like Thor, he was dressed for a great ceremony. They stood by a brazier at the foot of steps that lead up to the crowded throne room.

"Nervous, brother?" Loki asked.

"Have you ever known me to be nervous?" Thor asked.

"There was the time in Nornheim..." Loki said.

"That wasn't nerves, brother. It was the rage of battle. How else could I have fought my way through a hundred warriors and pulled us out alive?" Thor said.

The Attendant approached with another goblet of wine for Thor.

"As I recall, I was the one who veiled us in smoke to ease our escape." Loki said.

"Some do battle, others just do tricks." Thor said.

The Attendant stifled a laugh. Loki noticed, doesn't like it. He gestured towards the goblet in the Attendant's hand.

Eels poured over the sides of the goblet, slithering out and across the terrified Attendant's hand. He screamed, hurled the goblet to the ground. Loki chuckled.

"Loki..." Thor said warningly.

Loki gestured to the writhing eels on the ground. They turned back to spilled wine, the illusion shattered.

"Now that was just a waste of good wine." Thor said.

"Just a bit of fun." Loki said, then turned to the Attendant. "Right, my friend?"

The Attendant wasn't so sure. Thor dons his eagle-winged helmet.

"Nice feathers." Loki said.

"You don't really want to start this again, do you, Cow?" Thor asked.

"I was being sincere!" Loki said.

"You're incapable of sincerity." Thor said.

"Am I?" Loki asked.

He looks his brother in the eye, all pretense lost.

"You're my brother and my friend. Sometimes I'm envious, but never doubt that I love you." Loki said. "I am looking forward to this wedding, and so should you. Heimdall is a great man."

Thor searched his brother's face, saw no trace of irony. He was either speaking from his heart or he was a very, very good liar. Maybe both. Thor put an appreciative hand on his brother's shoulder.

"Thank you." Thor said.

The two brothers took in the moment a beat, then:

"Give us a kiss." Loki grinned.

"Stop." Thor said.

Thor made the final adjustments to his ceremonial wear.

"How do I look?" Thor said.

"Like a king." Loki said.

They heard the blast of a ceremonial horn.

"It's time." Loki said.

"You go ahead." Thor said.

Loki cast him a wary look.

"I'll be along. Go on." Thor said.

Loki headed inside the palace without his brother.

**Lounge**

Volstagg combed his great beard in preparation for the big event. As he did, he was surprised to find a stray grape stuck in the beard. He pulled it out, looks around, then eagerly pops it into his mouth and gobbled it down. Fandral checked his reflection in a mirror, smoothed out his mustache, gave himself a dashing smile. A pretty maiden held the mirror before him, as other maidens looked on dreamily.

"Thank you, love." Fandral said to the Maidens. "Now who'd like to polish my sword for me?"

The giddy Maidens eagerly raised their hands.

Hogun stood staring ahead grimly, his hands folded in front of him, amidst the hustle and bustle of the attendants and the ceremony preparations going on around him. A helpful attendant approached him and started to polish his armor.

Hogun turned his head, gave him a look. Intimidated, the Attendant quickly backed away. From behind, there was a woman in ceremonial armor taking off her sword and setting it on a table, then her shield, then several hidden knives and small, yet intimidating weapons. We revealed that it's Sif, looking radiant. She eyed the weapons on the table.

"I'll miss you." Sif said.

**Throne Room**

Colorful ceremonial banners of the Nine Realms adorned the room, crowded with aesir and representatives from across Yggdrasil, all buzzing with excitement.

Thor's comrades entered and strode to their place of honor at the front of the hall. They were:

The Warriors Three. Volstagg had the girth and strength of a Sumo wrestler, with oversized passions to match. Fandral, the consummate swashbuckler, was agile, charismatic, and nattily dressed. Hogun was dark, sullen, brooding with a large mace slung at his side.

With them walked the warrior maiden Sif. She was clad in armor, a shield and sword at her side - a beauty not to be trifled with.

"I hope this goes quickly. I'm famished." Volstagg said.

"Noooo!" Fandral feigned disbelief.

"Are you attached to that pretty face of yours? Because one more word, and you won't be." Volstagg said.

"My, we are hungry, aren't we?" Fandral said.

The others laughed, save Hogun. Fandral turned to him.

"Go on, Hogun. Smile. You can do it. Even you, Hogun the Grim. Just one smile." Fandral said.

Hogun stared at him grimly.

"All right, half a smile. Look, forget the smile, just show some teeth." Fandral said.

"Fandral, is it true the famous Warriors Three are ready to meet any challenge?" Sif said.

"Name it, Lady Sif." Fandral said.

"Keep your mouth shut." Sif said.

**Vault**

Imposing Einherjar Guards were clad in armor, swords at the ready, stand watch inside the massive underground structure beneath the palace.

A cold breeze blew past them.

**Throne Room**

Sif and the Warriors Three still waited before the crowd. Loki and Frigga enter. Loki takes his place at the front of the hall alongside the others. With another blast of the horn, the crowd goes silent as the Einherjar honor guard moved into formation. They parted to reveal Odin, sitting atop his throne, clad in full ceremonial armor. He held his spear gungnir before him. Any trace of weakness in him is gone now. He exuded all the power and majesty of a Ruler of Asgard. Frigga joined him at his side.

Heimdall stood at the throne in ceremonial attire. His bride, Setsuna, Guardian of The Gate of Space Time, stood next to him, looking resplendent. She had dark green hair and red eyes, with a slightly darker skin tone than the Asgardians, but not quite as dark as Heimdall himself.

Her dress was a white Empire Silhouette gown having a heavily decorated bodice.

Odin looked around the hall, cast a glance over to the Warriors. Thor was nowhere to be seen. Odin looked to Loki. Loki shrugged. Odin wasn't pleased.

A murmur spread through the crowd.

"Where is he?" Volstagg whispered to Loki.

"He said he'd be along." Loki said.

Sif realized the truth, shaking her head in disapproval.

"What?" Volstagg said.

"He wants to make an entrance." Sif said.

"Well, if he doesn't show up soon, he shouldn't bother. Odin looks like he's ready to feed him to his ravens." Fandral said.

"I wouldn't worry. Father will forgive him. He always does." Loki said.

Just then, at the back of the hall, up the steps from the lower level - Mjolnir roared up into the hall, Thor strod cockily into the hall behind it, catching it behind his back. The crowd erupts in cheers. Thor spun his hammer with a flourish, held it up before the crowd, basking in the moment, relishing the adoration, whipping his audience up into a frenzy.

"Oh, please." Sif said.

Odin watched from the front, not liking this showy display.

**Vault**

As the sound of the cheers echo from above, the odd, cold breeze picked up in the Vault. The Guards rubbed their limbs to warm themselves. They grew increasingly uneasy, sensing something was not right.

They exchanged a look, then walked the length of the Vault's hallway to its end, where a sword sat undisturbed upon a pedestal.

A shadow suddenly loomed over them. They look up and shouted in terror as they raised their weapons.

**Throne Room**

Thor finished stirring up the crowd, then reached the front of the room, knelt on one knee before his mother and father.

Frigga cast him an admonishing glance. Thor winked up at her. She couldn't help but smile.

Odin struck Gungnir upon the ground with a deafening boom.

The crowd fell silent. Odin spoke with quiet, effortless authority.

He raised Gungnir before him.

"Gungnir. Its aim is true, its power strong. With it I have defended Asgard and the lives of the innocent across the Nine Realms since the time of the Great Beginning. And now the time has come for it to bless the union of these two Guardians in marriage."

**Vault**

The bodies of the Guards were flung to the Vault's floor, now strewn with ice.

The attacker lifted the Sword of Winters, known to mortals as Excalibur, from it's stand.

**Throne Room**

The Ceremony continued.

"Today I entrust you with the greatest honor in all the Nine Realms. Love, Responsibility, duty, honor. These are not merely virtues to which we must aspire. They are essential to every marriage."

The Crowd and the Warriors Three started to shiver and rub their limbs for warmth in the increasingly cold air of the hall.

Heimdall and Setsuna turned back to face the Allfather. Odin looked upon them with pride.

"Heimdall, do you swear to guard, protect and love Setsuna for all eternity?" Odin asked.

"I swear." Heimdall said.

"Setsuna, Do you swear to guard, protect, and love Heimdall for all eternity?" Odin asked.

"I swear." Setsuna said.

"Then on this day, I, Odin Allfather, proclaim you-"

Odin hesitated, noticing a strange sight before him. Ice crept across the surface of the large banners around the hall, making an eerie cracking sound. Thor, his comrades, and the crowd see it too.

"The vault..." Odin whispered.

The far-off sounds of a battle echoed in the depths of the palace below. Sif and the Warriors Three reached for their weapons, as Thor raced from the hall.

**Vault**

Loki stood in the Vault, sees the Sword of Ancient Winters sitting on its stand.

He walked over to it slowly, reached out to it, lifted it between his forearms off its pedestal. As he did, a blueness spread from his arms, across his body. The latticework behind the Sword started to separate, the Destroyer rousing. A fire started to glow within its black metal armor, as it rattled to life, but Loki ignores it -the blueness spreading further, consuming his whole body.

"Stop!" Odin said.

Loki turned, saw Odin hurrying into the room, the Destroyer went motionless, the latticework rejoining before it.

Odin eyed Loki with dismay.

Thor entered, then stared shocked at the sight before him.

Sif and the Warriors Three hurried in behind Thor and stopped short.

"Loki!" Thor said.

"The Destroyer." Sif said.

"I thought it was but a legend." Volstagg said.

Fandral looked around the Vault, ill at ease.

"I've never been inside the Vault before. It's said the Tesseract was once held here." Fandral said.

"The Tesseract? I thought that was but a legend too!" Volstagg said.

"Shush!" Sif said.

Odin surveyed the destruction. "I would have a moment with my son alone."

Thor and the warriors left the Vault reluctantly.

"Am I cursed?" Loki said.

"No. Put the Sword down." Odin said.

Loki set the sword back upon its pedestal, his body quickly returning to its normal form and color. He stared at his father.

"What am I?" Loki said.

"You're my son." Odin said.

"What more than that?" Loki said.

Odin didn't answer. He looked suddenly weary, burdened.

Loki sized him up, realized the truth.

"The Sword wasn't the only thing you took from Jotunheim that day, was it?" Loki said.

Odin looked him in the eye. He could deny it no longer.

"No." Odin said. "In the aftermath of the battle, I went into the Temple, and I found a baby. Small for a giant's offspring - abandoned, suffering, left to die. Laufey's son."

Loki was sent reeling by the revelation.

"Laufey's son..." Loki said.

He desperately struggled to make sense of it all.

"Why? You were knee-deep in Jotun blood. Why would you take me?" Loki said.

"You were an innocent child." Odin said.

"You took me for a purpose, what was it?" Loki said.

Odin didn't answer.

"Tell me!" Loki said.

"I thought we could unite our kingdoms one day, bring about an alliance, bring about a permanent peace... through you. But those plans no longer matter." Odin said.

"So I am no more than another stolen relic, locked up here until you might have use of me." Loki said.

"Why do you twist my words?" Odin said.

"You could have told me what I was from the beginning. Why didn't you?" Loki said.

"You are my son. My blood. I wanted only to protect you from the truth." Odin said.

"Because I am the monster parents tell their children about at night?" Loki said.

"Don't..." Odin said.

"It all makes sense now. Why you favored Thor all these years." Loki said.

"Listen..." Odin said.

"Because no matter how much you claim to "love" me, you could never have a Frost Giant sitting on the Throne of Asgard!"

"Listen to me!" Odin said.

Loki strode away towards the exit.

"Loki!" Odin said grabbing hold of him. "You must suffer the consequences of your actions."

Bifrost

"Loki Odinson... You have disobeyed the express command of your King. You have destroyed innocent lives and stolen the power that would have one day been your birthright, now, no longer."

The Allfather plunged Gungnir into Observatory's control panel. The turret turned, the Bifrost energy building along with Odin's rage. It fired, as the Bifrost opened at the end of the platform, creating a portal behind Loki.

Odin turned angrily to his son.

"You are unworthy of this Realm..."

Odin ripped a disc off Loki's chest.

" ...unworthy of your title..."

He ripped away Loki's cloak.

"...unworthy of the loved ones you've betrayed. I hereby take from you your powers."

Odin extend Excalibur towards his son. Emerald magic went flying from Loki's body into the sword.

"In the name of my father..."

A tendril of icy air came off the hammer and hit Loki, disintegrating the right arm of his armor and part of the chest piece.

"...and of his father before..."

Another strike disintegrated the remainder of Loki's armor, including the cape and torn-away disc on the floor.

"I cast you out!"

Odin thrusts Excalibur before him and - with a swirl of ice - Loki was hurled backwards into the open Bifrost and disappeared in the vortex.

Odin held Excalibur in his hand, stared at it bitterly. He closed his eyes, lost in contemplation, whispered something quietly.

'Whosoever holds this sword, if he be worthy, shall possess the power of Loki." Odin said.

Runes appeared on the blade of the sword, as if carved into its smooth surface. The runes lingered for but a moment, then disappeared. Suddenly, Odin turned and hurled the sword into the Bifrost.


	4. Mortal

Loki opened his eyes, surrounded by darkness. Suddenly, he was blinded by bright headlights of a vehicle - an SUV. It swerved, the side of it coming straight at him. It slammed into him, pain coursing through him that he was surprised to feel—where was his magic? Why had it failed him?

After a beat, there were voices.

"I think that was legally your fault." Rei said.

"Get the first aid kit." Kurisuta said. "Come on. Do me a favor and don't be dead, okay? Open your eyes and look at me."

Loki opens his eyes to see Kurisuta Selvig staring at him, concerned. She looked beautiful, and familiar. "C-Chaos?"

"Wow. Does he need CPR? Because I know CPR." Rei said.

Xxx

Kurisuta regretfully watched the storm evaporate above their heads. A thought struck her.

"Where did he come from?" Kurisuta said.

They exchanged puzzled looks when Loki groaned again. He sat up abruptly, and Kurisuta toppled backwards in surprise.

Loki staggered groggily to his feet, then turned and offered Kurisuta a hand up. She took it hesitantly, and he easily pulled her up.

"Uh, thanks. Are you okay?" Kurisuta asked.

Loki searched the heavens.

Kurisuta noticed something on the ground around them. She shined her flashlight down at the sand.

"Father... look at this." Kurisuta said.

He joined her at her side and saw it. A faint, discernible pattern was etched into the sand. They exchange a look.

Amazed and excited, Kurisuta hurriedly took out a camera and snapped some photos of the runes. A breeze began to blow them away.

"We've got to move fast before anything changes." Selvig said. "We need soil samples, light readings, everything."

He pulled out a light meter, held it up, took some readings, jotted them down in his notebook. Kurisuta looked at Loki, who stared up at the sky.

"Why can I not use my magic?" Loki shouted.

"Father, we need get him to a hospital." Kurisuta said.

Selvig knelt and quickly scooped up a soil sample in the canister.

"Not right now. It'll take too long. County's an hour away. We'll drop him off after we're done here." Selvig said.

Kurisuta looked uncertain.

"Look at him, he's fine." Selvig said.

Loki stared up at the stars, shouted up at them angrily. "Father! Heimdall! I know you can hear me! It's Loki and you know it! Open the bridge!"

"Okay, you and Rei take him to the hospital, I'll stay here." Selvig said.

"You expect me to leave you alone in the middle of the desert?" Kurisuta said.

Loki turned to the others, frustrated.

"You! What world is this?" Loki demanded.

The group was intimidated by his fervor.

"It's all right. We're going to get you some help." Kurisuta said.

Kurisuta touched Loki's shoulder. Blue spread from where she touched him. Loki shoved him off, growing agitated, belligerent.

"Where am I?! Answer me!" Loki asked.

Rei reached into her fanny pack, pulled something out of it.

Kurisuta looked on, concerned.

"Kurisuta, just back away..." Selvig said.

"You're in a cornfield outside the town of Lawrence." Kurisuta said calmly.

"What Realm?! Alfheim? Nornheim?" Loki said.

"Uh... Kansas?" Rei said.

Rei raised a taser at him. Loki looked at the weapon, unsure what to make of it.

"You think you can harm me you mewling—"

Rei fired, the electrified wires shooting out of the taser, zapping him in the chest. Loki convulsed, fell to the ground unconscious. Kurisuta and Selvig stared at her, shocked.

"What? He was freaking me out." Rei said.

As Selvig still took soil samples, Rei and Kurisuta struggled to drag an unconscious Loki to the SUV and lifted him inside.

"Next time you decide to taser someone, do me a favor and make sure they're already inside the truck." Kurisuta said. "Dad, come on..."

Reluctantly, Selvig joined the others inside the SUV.

The SUV headed off into the distance. Behind it, high overhead, a hole opened in the sky. A last blast of Bifrost energy burst forth from it, and a small object came firing into our world. It burned across the desert sky like a meteor.

**County Hospital**

The SUV sat parked before the emergency room entrance.

Selvig watched the unconscious Loki with interest as two orderlies set the Asgardian onto a gurney. Kurisuta and Rei stand before a sweet, ditzy admissions nurse.

"Name?" The admissions nurse said.

"He said it was "Loki." Kurisuta said.

The Nurse painstakingly typed it into the computer, one key at a time. Kurisuta watched as Loki was wheeled out of the room.

"L-O-K-I. And your relationship to him?" The admissions nurse said.

"I've never met him before." Kurisuta said.

"Until she hit him with the car." Rei said.

"Grazed him, actually." Kurisuta said. "Oh, and we tasered him, too."

"Must have been quite the spat." The admissions nurse said.

"I told you, I don't know him. I just want to make sure he's okay." Kurisuta said.

"I'm going to need a name and contact number." The admissions nurse said.

"Kurisuta Selvig." Kurisuta said.

"K-U-R-I-" The admissions nurse said.

"Oh, for God's sake..." Selvig said.

He reached over Kurisuta's shoulder and handed the Nurse his business card.

"Here. Let's go." Selvig said.

Selvig, Rei, and Kurisuta headed out.

**Hospital ER**

Loki, now in a hospital gown, winced in pain as he awakened on a gurney to find a Nurse standing over him, a syringe in his arm.

"Hi. Just taking a little blood." The nurse said.

Loki slapped the syringe away angrily, started to sit up.

"We're trying to help you!" The nurse said.

"Then bring me a healing stone, you savages!" Loki said.

The nurse injected him with a sedative.

Loki struggled a beat, then passed out.

**Lone Star Lake**

Steam rose from the now frozen Lone Star Lake, though it was mid-summer. At the bottom of the lake glittered the Sword of Winters, Excalibur.

A Townie pulled his pick-up to a stop at the lakes edge. He climbed out, peered down below, his curiosity piqued by what he saw.

"Huh." The townie said.

The Townie approached the center of the frozen lake. The light from Excalibur bathed him in an otherworldly, blue luminous glow. He reached down, touched the ice, and screamed. His skin froze solid as all the water in his body turned to ice and his skin turned blue and black from frostbite.

The townie fell to the ground as his friend in the truck screamed, got in the truck, and sped away.

**Selvig's Lab**

The distant mountains glinted snow in the early morning light.

Kurisuta appeared with a cup of coffee and surveyed the vast cornfields. She turned back into the lab and saw Selvig, busy at his workstation, soldering a piece of equipment.

A printer churned out blown-up screen-cap photos of the Bifrost footage. Rei hung them on the wall.

Kurisuta surveyed the scene, watched how Selvig worked, impressed. She noticed a monitor which displayed a complex program entitled "E. SELVIG ALGORITHM ANALYSIS". She looked proud.

The three of them had been up all night, fueled by caffeine and excitement.

"Rei, when you're done, take the soil samples to Professor Meyers in geology. Remind him, he owes me." Selvig said.

"We might want to perform a spectral analysis." Kurisuta said.

Selvig got up, inserted the piece of equipment she's been working on into a rack-mounted server.

"You know what would be really useful? Do you still have that friend at LIGO?" Selvig asked.

"He was more than a friend." Kurisuta said.

"Could you call in a favor?" Selvig said.

"You don't think this was just a magnetic storm?" Kurisuta said.

"If I'm right, their observatory must have picked up gravitational waves during last night's event." Selvig said.

"Meaning?" Kurisuta said.

Selvig headed over to a computer monitor. Kurisuta followed.

"Meaning these anomalies might signify something bigger." Selvig said.

"How "big" are we talking about?" Kurisuta said.

Kurisuta indicated the footage on the monitor. As the last of the Bifrost cloud disappeared into the night sky, there appeared to be a blister in space, bulging out in convex and covered with stars.

"I think the lensing around the edges is characteristic of an Einstein-Rosen Bridge." Selvig said.

"A what?" Rei said.

"I thought you were a science major." Kurisuta said.

"IT Major." Rei said.

"An Einstein-Rosen Bridge - a "theoretical" connection between two different points of space-time." Kurisuta said.

Rei stared blankly.

"A wormhole." Selvig said.

Kurisuta printed out a frame-grab off the monitor.

"Dad, look..."

Kurisuta indicated the print-out showing the constellations seen through the "bubble" in the clouds.

"What do you see here?" Kurisuta said.

"Stars." Selvig said.

"Yes. But not our stars." Kurisuta said.

She spread out a star chart, barely able to contain her excitement.

"This is the star alignment for our quadrant, this time of year. So unless Ursa Minor decided to take the day off... those are someone else's constellations." Kurisuta said.

Selvig was intrigued, in spite of himself.

Rei pulled another frame-grab of the Bifrost footage from the printer and hung it on the wall, when something in the image catched her eye.

"Hey, check it out." Rei said.

Kurisuta and Selvig examined the photo, amazed.

"Is that...?" Selvig said.

"I think I left something at the hospital." Kurisuta said.

On the photo was: Inside the Bifrost funnel cloud was a figure - the vague, but unmistakable shape of a man.


	5. Good Parenting

**Odin's Chambers, Asgard**

At the top of the palace, there was a small figure on the balcony. It was a burdened Odin, looking out over Asgard.

Frigga entered to find Odin standing lost in thought.

"How could you have done this?" Frigga asked.

"You saw his misery, his pain," Odin said. "This was the only way."

"But banishment? You would lose him forever? He's your son!" Frigga said.

"What would you have done?" Odin asked.

"I would not have exiled him to a world of mortals, stripped of his powers, to suffer alone. I would not have had the heart for such cruelty!" Frigga cried.

"I sent him to her," Odin said. "It is the only way he will ever find happiness."

"And what of your word?" Frigga asked. "The goddess—"

"Loki is mortal now," Odin said. "And so is his love. This breaks no taboo."

He looked up at the sky, a pained expression on his face.

"I, too, grieve the loss of our son." Odin said. "But there are some things that even I cannot undo."

"You can bring him back." Frigga said.

"No. His fate is in his own hands now." Odin said.


	6. Escape

Loki awakened on a hospital bed. He noticed restraints on his wrists now. He pulled at them, tried to free himself, to no avail.

"It's not possible." Loki said.

He tried again, flicking his hands this way and that, trying to work his way out of the restraints. One of his hands slipped free from its restraint.

Kurisuta again faced the Admissions Nurse, with Selvig and Rei nearby.

"I'm sorry, only relatives can visit patients." The admissions nurse said.

"But... I'm his wife." Kurisuta said.

Rei stifled a snicker at this, as the Nurse looked doubtful.

"I thought you said you didn't know him." The admissions nurse said.

"I meant I barely know him anymore. The man he's become. He's changed. I mean, what woman really knows her husband, anyway?" Kurisuta said.

"None of us, dear. He's in Room 102." The admissions nurse said.

Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei headed down the corridor.

They entered Loki's room.

They stepped inside to find Loki's bed empty.

Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei quickly climb into Kurisuta's SUV.

Kurisuta started the car, frustrated.

"Typical. I just lost my most important piece of evidence." Kurisuta said.

"So now what?" Rei said.

"We find him." Kurisuta said.

"I don't know if finding him is the best idea." Selvig said.

"I want to know what that thing was, and he may have the answers. We don't have a choice." Kurisuta said.

"Oo-kay. She pulls out her taser and a can of mace." Rei said.

"So we're just going to spend the rest of the day looking for him?" Selvig said.

"However long it takes." Kurisuta said.

Kurisuta put the car in reverse and backed up, when -BAM! She collided with Loki again, dressed in stolen hospital scrubs. Kurisuta and Selvig exchanged a look.

Kurisuta and Selvig emerge from the SUV, helped Loki to his feet.

"I'm so sorry. I swear I'm not doing that on purpose." Kurisuta said.

Loki looked up at the sky.

"Blue sky... one sun... This is Earth, isn't it?" Loki said.

"I think you may have hit him with the car one time too many." Rei said.

"Let's get you some clothes." Kurisuta said.


	7. Rescue

**Lounge**

Sif, Thor, and the Warriors three, battered and shell-shocked, still reeling from the day's events, sit before a roaring central fire.

"We should never have let him go." Thor said.

"There was no stopping him." Sif said.

"At least he's only banished, not dead." Hogun said.

"How did the guard even know?" Volstagg asked.

"I told him." Thor said.

"What?" Fandral said.

"I told him to go to Odin after Loki went into the Vault." Thor said. "Though he should be flogged for taking so long."

"You told the guard?" Volstagg said.

"I had no idea Father would banish him for what he did." Thor said.

"Thor, you're the only one who can help Loki now." Sif said. "You must go to the Allfather and convince him to change his mind!"

"You are right!" Thor said. "I will go now and convince him!"

He left the room.

**Throne Room**

"Loki did not deserve what you have done!" Thor said to his father.

"This was his fate," Odin said. "To rob him of it would be to subject him to a life of mourning."

"His fate?" Thor said. "Why did you send the Sword of Winters after him?"

"It is his birthright," Odin said. "Excalibur belongs to him just a Mjolnir belongs to you."

"You can't leave him like this on Earth!" Thor protested. "We must act!"

Odin turned to Sif and the Warriors Three.

"Leave us." Odin said.

Thor's comrades exited. Odin eyed Thor.

"And what action would you take?" Odin asked.

"Go to Earth," Thor said. "Return Loki's powers. Then let him make the decision if he wants to stay or not!"

"You are being selfish!" Odin said. "What of your brother's feelings? Perhaps he does not want to return? Would you truly let him stay then?"

There was a silence as Thor considered.

"As King of Asgard, I would-" Thor began.

"You are not King. Not yet." Odin said.

Thor saw in his father's face that he had pushed this as far as he can. He backed away, then left, pushing through the doors so hard that they slammed backwards behind him. Odin watched him go.

**Banquet Hall**

Thor stood in the empty hall, bearing the signs of the festivities cancelled due to the events of the day. Anger and frustration rising within him, Thor upended one of the massive tables.

Sif, Fandral, and Hogun followed Volstagg as he entered in search of his dinner.

"Redecorating, are we?" Sif said.

Volstagg surveyed the overturned tables and food, aghast.

"What's this - ?!" Volstagg said.

"I told you they'd cancel it." Hogun said.

"We thought that was just you being your normal cheery self." Fandral said.

Volstagg looked about the floor, despairing.

"All this food - so innocent, cast to the ground. It breaks the heart!" Volstagg said.

Thor strode away from them to the far end of the hall.

"If it's any consolation, I think you're right." Sif said. "Loki should not have been cast out for what he did.

"Yes, exactly!" Thor said.

"But there's nothing we can do without defying the AllFather." Sif said.

Thor considered this, looked at his hammer, a gleam in his eye.

Loki can guess what he was thinking, growing concerned.

"No... stop there! I know that look!" Sif said.

"It's the only way to ensure the safety of my brother." Thor said.

"It's madness!" Sif said.

"Madness? What sort of madness?" Volstagg said.

"Nothing! Thor was making a jest!" Sif said.

"The safety of Loki is no jest. We're going to Midgard." Thor said.

"What?!" Fandral said.

"Thor, of all the laws of Asgard, this is one you must not break." Sif said.

"Haven't you heard of the vengeful goddess who lives there?" Fandral asked.

"The uneasy treaty between her and Odin that keeps both mortals and Asgardians safe?" Volstagg said.

"Of course I've heard," Thor said. "But why should my brother suffer because of some law."

"It is forbidden!" Sif said.

Thor sized up his friends, smiled. He proceeded to make his case with enthusiasm and charismatic conviction.

"My friends, have you forgotten all that we've done together?

He turns to Fandral.

"Who brought you into the sweet embrace of the most exotic maidens in all of Yggdrasil?" Thor said.

"You did." Fandral said.

"Who led you into the most glorious of battles..." Thor said to Hogun.

"...and to delicacies so succulent, you thought you'd died and gone to Valhalla?" Thor said to Volstagg.

"You did." Hogun said.

"You did." Volstagg said.

He turned to Sif.

"And who proved wrong all who scoffed at the idea that a young maiden could be one of the fiercest warriors this Realm has ever known?" Thor said.

"I did." Sif said.

"True. But I supported you..." Thor said then turned to the others. "My friends, trust me now. We must do this."

The others exchanged concerned looks, realized there was no convincing him.

"Come on. You're not going to let me take all the glory, are you?" Thor said.

"I will be at your side." Volstagg said.

"And I." Fandral said.

"And I. The Warriors Three fight together." Hogun said.

"I fear we'll live to regret this." Sif said.

"If we're lucky." Volstagg said.

Thor, Sif, and the Warriors Three walked from the Palace, across the grounds. They reached a group of attendants who readied their battle gear for their journey.

"We must first find a way to get past Heimdall." Thor said.

"That will be no easy task. It's said the Gatekeeper can see a single dew drop fall from a blade of grass a thousand worlds away." Volstagg said.

"And he can hear a cricket passing gas in Niffelheim." Fandral said.

"Jest not! He heareth all!" Volstagg said.

"Please. Getting past him should be simple enough." Fandral said.

Volstagg, terrified, called out to the sky.

"Forgive him! He meaneth no offense!" Volstagg.

Thor lead them onward.

Thor and his band of adventurers, on horseback, passed through the massive Gate, leaving Asgard behind. They rode along the most astounding path in this Realm or any other - the rainbow bridge.

Wide and flat, it ran straight out from Odin's palace to the mists and black void of space beyond. In the distance far ahead, the Bridge continued on until it reached Heimdall's Observatory.

**Heimdall's Observatory**

The band drew near the Observatory, where Heimdall himself, Gatekeeper of Asgard, stood at his post on the Bridge before them, blocking their way, staring them down.

There was something other-worldly about him, even for this Realm. He held a massive sword in front of him, his stern, intimidating face virtually concealed by armor. Something glinted beneath his visor, like twinkling stars.

"You're not dressed properly." Heimdall said to them

Thor, Loki, and the others trade looks.

"I'm sorry?" Thor asked.

"The humans on Earth do not dress like that." Heimdall said. "You think you can deceive me? I, who watch all? I, who can sense the flapping of a butterfly's wings a thousand worlds away?"

He fixed his eyes pointedly at Fandral. "Or can hear a cricket passing gas in Niffelheim?" Fandral looked gob-smacked.

"That was just a bit of a jest, really..." Fandral said.

"Enough." Thor said, then to Heimdall. "Heimdall, may we pass?"

Heimdall stared him down.

"I was the one who doomed your brother to his fate," Heimdall said. "This time, I believe he deserves the choice that only you can give him."

"Then tell no one where we've gone until we've returned." Thor said.

Thor walked past Heimdall as the Gatekeeper let the group pass.

Thor and the others entered the Observatory, stepped onto a platform. It was already opened to another Observatory on Pluto where his wife and fellow Setsuna had resumed her post. It was obvious that he spent much of his time speaking with her.

Heimdall climbed into the large control apparatus at the center of the room and readied the Observatory.

"Be warned. I will honor my sworn oath to protect this Realm as its Gatekeeper. If your return threatens the safety of Asgard, the Bifrost will remain closed to you. You'll be left to die on the Earth."

"I have no plans to die today." Thor said.

"None do." Heimdall said.

Heimdall inserts his sword into the control panel, and the apparatus of the Observatory started up.

The Bifrost energy quickened along the Bridge, feeding into the Observatory.

Heimdall turned his sword in the control panel. The Observatory's giant turret swung around, aimed toward a section of space. As a final step, Heimdall plunged his sword deeper into the control panel. The great turret fires, the rainbow light of Bifrost energy blasted out of it.

The Bifrost opened at the end of the platform upon which Thor and his five comrades stand.

"All is ready. You may pass." Heimdall said.

"Couldn't you just leave the bridge open for us?" Volstagg said.

"To keep this bridge open would unleash the full power of the Bifrost and destroy Earth with you upon it." Heimdall said.

"Ah. Never mind, then." Volstagg said.

Thor started towards the Bifrost, turned back to the others, grins.

"Come on. Don't be bashful." Thor said.

The others joined him at his side, then stepped towards the Bifrost. Their bodies stretched towards the maelstrom, changing shape, as if every atom of their being was being elongated by the pull of it. In an instant, they were jerked off the platform and inside the vortex.

**Lawrence, Kansas**

A hole in the sky ripped open, and the Bifrost came shooting out of it. Snow flurried up when the Bifrost hit, as Thor and his band touched down. Runes from the Bifrost were imprinted on the ground around them, cutting through the cornfield.

**Odin's Chambers**

Odin looked up at the sky, watching his other son leave for Earth.

Odin's body began to shake, he lifted his hand. It started to move out of synch temporarily, leaving a trail, the effect of the Odinsleep approaching.

Odin started towards Frigga, who stood up, realizing something was wrong.

The enormous mental, emotional, and physical strain of recent events finally took its toll.

The effect of the Odinsleep consumed him. His entire body now moved out of sync with the rest of the world, leaving trails behind him as he staggered backwards. Odin fell back against a wall, his face contorting in a scream. He collapsed to the stone floor.

Frigga, shocked, hurried to him. She took Odin in her arms, called out. "Guards!"


	8. Frostbite

**Lone Star Lake**

Cars, pick-ups, and SUVs were parked around the lake, the sound of a boisterous party coming from within.

It looked like the whole town had turned out. Locals sat on lounge chairs, drank beer from coolers, laugh and talk. They watched the center of the crater, where large men had formed a line to take a turn with the mysterious object.

One of them broke the ice with an axe. He dove into the water, caught hold of Excalibur. As he let go, he returned to the surface with a blackened, frost bitten hand.

The next man stepped up and dove in, this one wearing gloves. He came back up with gloves shredded and blackened fingertips.

Other Townies snapped pictures of the scene with their cell phones.

They heard an approaching rumble, then cleared a path as a large pick-up truck backed its way down the lake's edge. An eager townie hopped out the passenger side and pulled a thick chain from the back of the truck.

He lowered the hook into the water and fastened one end around the object, then securely affixed the chain to the bumper and the rear of the undercarriage.

"This'll do it." The townie said.

He yelled to the driver. "Okay, let 'er rip!"

The townsfolk watched as the pick-up's engine roared, then strained, its wheels spinning futilely, until finally the rear of the truck, along with the back wheels and axles, broke off and went flying. It was frozen solid, as was the rest of the truck and the chain and hook.

People dove out of the way.

The townsfolk laughed, the party continuing. They didn't notice as -

**Entrance to Lone Star Lake Park**

An imposing government vehicle pulled up to a stop. A Fed in a suit climbed out, peered down at the boisterous gathering below, his eyes fixed on the object at the center of the lake.

He was SHIELD Agent Coulson. He stared down at the object which glowed with an otherworldly blue energy - Excalibur. He pulled out a phone.

"Sir - we've found it." Coulson said.


	9. Revalations

**Selvig Lab**

Kurisuta walked into the bedroom that she had given to Loki holding a folded pair of jeans and a green shirt. "Green is your color."

"How did you know that?" Loki asked her suspiciously.

"You are wearing it now," Kurisuta said. "It's shredded, but green and appears to be silk."

"Of course it's silk!" Loki exclaimed. "I am—"

He stopped, considering his words carefully. "I was a very powerful man."

"Who are you exactly?" Kurisuta asked. "All I know is your name is Loki and you're a bit unbalanced."

"My name is Loki," Loki said, weaving a lie. "I woke in that crater knowing nothing but my name and mere snippets of my past. If I may, I seem unbalanced because I am merely confused and overwhelmed. I get the feeling that whoever I was before, I am no longer, and perhaps it is due to this that I cannot remember."

Kurisuta sighed. "I ran you over twice. If anything, I may have caused your memory loss, Loki. Feel free to mooch off of us until you get back on your feet."

She handed him a blanket. He waved it away.

"Are you sure?" Kurisuta asked. "Dad keeps the house cold at night."

"The cold never bothers me," Loki said, and closed his door and locked it.

He changed into the clothes she had left him and turned out the light, then lay down. Though he was mortal, he still had superior hearing and thus heard the conversation down the hall.

Xxx

"You can't be thinking of keeping him here?" Selvig shouted.

"Keep your voice down!" Kurisuta said. "He'll hear you."

"The guy's definitely not human," Rei said. "He doesn't smell human."

"He's obviously lying to you," Selvig said. "Feigning memory loss. And he could be another bounty hunter!"

"Rei is he a demon?" Kurisuta asked.

"No way," Rei said. "He's no demon. He's a deity I think."

"Then why would he be here?" Kurisuta asked. "Those snobs never bother with us scum."

"Did you do something?" Selvig asked.

The room went silent.

Kurisuta laughed. "I've been on the straight and narrow for 250 years. We've broken no laws. In fact, we've been protecting innocent lives and helping you with science in our spare time."

Selvig sighed. "I promised I would help the two of you and I will. You help a lot of people. But if this Loki is _the _Loki of Jotunheim, then we just landed in a world of trouble."

Xxx

Loki lay in the dark, a smile forming on his lips. So those two women were not, in fact, mere mortal scientists, but instead yokai. And Kurisuta, it seemed more and more likely that she was Chaos reborn with every passing moment.

He wondered if he could still visit home, even without magic, through dream travel. It was worth a try. He closed his eyes...

Xxx

Frigga sat at her husband's bedside, holding his hand. Odin lay there - looking pale and lifeless, his body and the space around it warped from the effect of the Odinsleep. The walls of the chamber had moved close around him, protecting him like a dark crypt, sealing off any daylight.

Loki sat at Odin's side, across from Frigga. "When did it happen?"

"After Thor left," Frigga replied. "He couldn't bear to be parted from you both."

"And where is Thor?" Loki asked.

"Earth, looking for you," Frigga replied.

"Chaos," Loki spoke the name carefully. "How long have you known?"

"We have known since her birth—the heavens move when a goddess is born, even if it is a rebirth," She spoke softly to him. "I asked him to be honest with you from the beginning. There should be no secrets in a family."

"So why did he lie?" Loki asked, pained.

"He feared the pale goddess' wrath," Frigga said. "And he did not want you to attempt to woo a child, and she was, for a long time, just a child."

Loki took this in, stared at Odin.

"You can speak to him. He can see and hear us, even now." Frigga said.

"How long will it last?" Loki asked.

"I don't know. This time is different. We were unprepared." Frigga said."

"I never get used to seeing him like this. The most powerful being in the Nine Realms lying helpless until his body is restored." Loki said.

"But he's put it off for so long now, I fear..." Frigga said.

Loki tried to take her hand, her hand went through his. She wiped tears from her eyes.

"You're a good son." Frigga said.

Loki sat there, uncertain how to react, uncertain how he really felt.

"We mustn't lose hope that your father will return to us. And that you and your brother will come home." Frigga said.

Loki looked to Frigga, concerned.

"What hope is there for me?"

"There's always a purpose to everything your father does. You may yet find a way home." Frigga said. "Now you must go. It is time for you to wake up."


	10. Diner

**Buddy's Diner**

Loki, Selvig, Rei, and Kurisuta sit at a table at a local diner. Selvig and Rei watched as Loki ate mannerly from a plate of steak and eggs.

Kurisuta was eager, her notebook at the ready. "Now tell us exactly what happened to you last night."

Loki looks her in the eyes, staring, intrigued. Kurisuta got flustered, looks away.

Maybe start with how you got inside that cloud."

"And how you could eat an entire box of Pop-Tarts and still be this hungry." Rei said. "And, oh, why did you cut and eat Pop-Tarts like they were the same as steak?"

Kurisuta shot her a withering look. Loki sipped a cup of coffee.

"This is excellent," Loki said.

"Yeah, it's great, isn't it?" Rei said. "Isabela makes the best coffee in town."

Loki looked at the now empty mug, considering it. "May I have some more?"

Isabela Alvarez, the diner's proprietor, glanced at Loki from behind the counter. "A él le gusta mi café!"

Loki smiled charmingly. "Tu café, mi buena mujer, es resplandeciente, y eres amable y hermosa."

She quickly brought some more coffee, warming to his charm.

"What was that?" Kurisuta said.

He didn't understand for a moment, then realized that most humans did not possess the Allspeak. The other patrons stared at him.

"It was delicious. I wanted to compliment her in her native tongue." Loki said. "I do not remember much, but somehow I understand and speak the lovely language of Spanish."

Selvig narrowed his eyes at Loki suspiciously.

"Loki, most people do not just randomly speak other languages," Kurisuta said. "Unless their families speak it or they are a professor at a college."

"But Kurisuta," Loki said. "People prefer to be spoken to in their language. It is common courtesy."

Kurisuta considered. "Alright. It is alright to thank someone in their native tongue, but promise me you won't intrude on people's private lives."

Loki smirked, then lied easily. "You have my word."

A few townies, looking bedraggled, entered and took a seat at the counter. These people came from Lone Star Lake.

"Morning, Pete. Jake." Isabela said.

"The usual, please, Izzy." Pete said.

Isabela poured them a couple cups of coffee.

"You missed all the excitement out at the lake." Jake said, revealing a wrapped up arm. "We had to go to the ER after."

"What happened at the lake?" Isabella asked.

Kurisuta and Selvig overhear this, exchanged a look, turned to the Townies with interest.

"They're saying some kind of satellite crashed in the lake," Pete said. "Froze it. Gave all of us a touch of frostbite."

Loki's head snapped up.

"We were having a good time with it till the Feds showed up, chased us out." Jake said.

"Excuse me, did you say there was a satellite crash?" Kurisuta asked.

"Yep. They said it was radioactive. And I had my hands all over it." Jake said. "I'm probably sterile now."

Loki finished the steak and eggs, wiped his mouth, and prepared politely to dig into the giant pile of pancakes. Rei was amazed by the sight.

"Oh my God, look at those manners," Rei said. "This is going on Facebook."

Rei whipped out her cellphone and started to take a video.

"What did the satellite look like?" Selvig asked.

"Like one of those old-timey swords," Jake said. "From Camelot, what's the name?"

"Excalibur," Loki breathed unintentionally.

Loki stood, placing his napkin gently on the table, and strode over to Jake. "Could you kindly tell me where this lake is?"

His voice was gentle, charming the townie, but his eyes were hard, focused.

Selvig noticed, suspicious even more.

"About twelve miles east of here." Jake said. "Lone Star Lake."

Loki was jubilant, but did not allow it to show on his face, as he quickly strode out of the diner.

"I wouldn't bother! Looked like the whole Army was coming in when we left!" Pete warned.

**Outside**

Loki studied the position of the sun, gauging his bearings.

Kurisuta, Rei, and Selvig caught up to him.

"Where are you going?" Kurisuta asked.

"Twelve miles east of here." Loki said.

He started to stride determinedly down the street. Kurisuta walked with him.

"Why?" Kurisuta asked.

"To get my p—memories back," Loki said. "I believe that satellite is the key to my entire life, Kurisuta."

"So now you own a satellite?" Kurisuta asked.

"It's not what they say it is." Loki said.

"Whatever it is, the government seems to think it's theirs. You intend to just walk in there and take it?" Kurisuta asked.

"Yes." Loki said.

He stopped walking.

"If you take me there now, I'll tell you everything you wish to know." Loki said solemnly. This time he meant it. If he got his powers back, he intended to pick up where he left off with this woman who was once his Chaos.

"Everything?" Kurisuta asked.

"All the answers you seek will be yours, once I reclaim Excalibur." Loki said.

Rei looked to the others.

"Eikus Cali Werr?" What's "Eikus Cali Werr?" Rei said, a smirk on her lips.

Loki's head snapped in her direction, eyes narrowing. How did she know the Celtic name for the Sword of Winters?

Kurisuta studied Loki. He looked sincere. She was nearly swayed,

"Kurisuta." Selvig said.

He pulled her aside. Loki could tell that Selvig didn't much care for him.

And then Selvig began speaking lowly to Kurisuta in another language. A language Loki did not understand. It was impossible, frustrating, how was it happening?

"Please don't do this." Selvig said.

"You know what we saw last night. This can't be a coincidence. I want to know what's in that lake." Kurisuta replied.

"I'm not talking about the crater. I'm talking about him." Selvig said.

"He's promised us answers." Kurisuta said.

"He's a deity!" Selvig said. "We don't know why he's here. He could be planning a divine judgement of some kind!"

"I'd just be driving him out there, that's all." Kurisuta said.

"It's dangerous. He's dangerous." Selvig said.

After a moment, she nodded. They headed back over to Loki and Rei.

"I'm sorry. I can't take you." Kurisuta said in English.

"I understand. Then this is where we say goodbye." Loki said, fully intending to return to her.

He took her hand and kissed it.

"That's... thank you." Kurisuta said.

Loki bowed slightly to each of them.

"Kurisuta... Selvig...Rei. Farewell." Loki said.

He headed off down the street. Selvig looks relieved.

"Now... let's get back to the lab. We have work to do." Selvig said.

Selvig and Rei turned and start to go. Kurisuta looked after Loki as he walked away down the street.


	11. Taken

**Main Street**

Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei headed up the street. They're by Arturo's, when a pick-up truck pulled up before them, stopped by traffic. In the back of the vehicle, Kurisuta noticed, partially covered by a tarp, the dark matter analysis machine from her lab.

"Hey! That's my stuff!" Selvig said.

**Selvig Lab**

Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei reached the lab, where government vehicles were parked. SHIELD agents hauled equipment out of the lab and loaded it into waiting vans. Other Agents stripped all the equipment from inside the Focus and cart it away.

Still others emerge from her trailer, arms loaded with scientific instruments and documents.

"What the hell is going on here?!" Selvig asked.

The Agents ignored him as Agent Coulson approached.

"Mr Selvig, I'm Agent Coulson, with SHIELD." Coulson said.

Selvig, recognizing the name of the organization, grew wary.

"I don't care who you work for, you can't do this!" Kurisuta said.

"Kurisuta. This is more serious than you realize. Let it go." Selvig said.

"Let it go?! This is your life!" Kurisuta said.

"We're here investigating a security threat. We need to appropriate your equipment and all your atmospheric data." Coulson said.

"By "appropriate" you mean "steal?"" Kurisuta said.

Instead of answering, Coulson gave her a check.

"This should more than compensate you for your trouble." Coulson said.

She threw the check to the ground without looking at it.

"We can't just pick up replacements from RadioShack! We made most of that equipment ourselves!" Kurisuta said.

"Then I'm sure you can do it again." Coulson said.

"And I'm sure I can sue you for violating my constitutional rights!" Kurisuta said.

"We're the good guys, Ms. Selvig." Coulson said.

He tried to walk away, but Kurisuta blocked his path. She was fully herself, fueled by outrage.

"So are we! We're on the verge of understanding something extraordinary." Kurisuta held up her notebook. "Everything I know about this phenomenon is in this lab and in this book, and no one has the right to take it from me."

Coulson gestured to a nearby agent, who promptly plucked the notebook out of Kurisuta's hands and added it to the pile he was carrying. Kurisuta was stunned.

"Thank you for your cooperation." Coulson said.

He got into a car. The cars and trucks pulled away.

Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei entered, staring in shock at the now-empty space.

"Years of research, gone." Kurisuta said.

"They even took my iPod." Rei said.

"And our back-ups?" Selvig said.

"Look around! They took our back-ups. They took the back-ups of our back-ups." Kurisuta said.

"I just downloaded, like, thirty songs on there." Rei said.

"Will you please stop talking about your iPod?!" Kurisuta said. "Who are these people?"

"No one knows much about them. But I knew a scientist - a pioneer in gamma radiation. SHIELD showed up, and he was never heard from again." Selvig said.

"I'm not going to let them do this. I'm getting everything back." Kurisuta said.

"Please, let me contact one of my colleagues. Dr. Pym has had some dealings with these people. I'll e-mail him and see if he can help." Selvig said.

"They took your laptop, too." Rei said.

Annoyed, Selvig thought.

**Lawrence Library**

Selvig and Kurisuta in the Focus drove up in front of the town's rinky-dink library. A sign in the window read, "FREE INTERNET."

"I'll just be a minute." Selvig said.

He climbed out and headed inside. Kurisuta looked down the street and saw something that intrigued her.


	12. Excalibur

**Lawrence Street**

Loki was walking purposefully twelve miles east.

Just then, Loki heard a car horn. He turned to the open door.

Across the street, Kurisuta called to him from the Focus.

"You still want a lift?" Kurisuta said.

**Lawrence Library**

It was story time in the library, as a librarian read a book -"The Secret History of Giants" - to a group of kids.

"And though they're large, giants can be quiet. You have to listen carefully for the sound of their footsteps - because they may be closer than you think." The librarian said.

Nearby, Selvig sat at a computer terminal, finishing up his e-mail. Beside him, a kid flipped through a book with interest. The Librarian stopped mid-story and calls to the kid pleasantly.

"Joshua, come sit down. It's story time." The librarian said.

The kid closes his book and joins the others. Selvig looked over, noticed the title of the book the Kid was reading -"Myths and Legends from around the World."

He picked it up, flips through it, stopped at the section on Scandinavian Mythology. It was a picture of a rainbow bridge coming down from Asgard to earth. Asgardians walked upon it, among them Odin, Loki, and Thor, who wielded Mjolnir. On the ground below them, a group of Vikings kneeled reverently.

He eyed the illustration, pondering.

**Cornfields**

Kurisuta's Focus cut off the road, headed through the cornfields. Storm clouds roll in over the sky.

Kurisuta drove, pumped with adrenaline, nervous and excited, as Loki sat beside her, smirking ever so slightly.

"We're going to stick it to them!" Kurisuta said. "I never get to get real justice. Too much personal gain crap mucking it up."

Loki looked amused. "Personal Gain? As in the Wiccan Rede?"

"You know it?" Kurisuta asked.

"It is one of the things that I remember," Loki said.

"They stole from my father," Kurisuta said. "I have to get back his research."

"You really care for that man, don't you?" Loki said.

"Yes I do," Kurisuta said. "I'm sure you have a family too. Someone out there looking for you."

She looked at him, saw him staring at her. She was lost in his gaze, distracted, when the Focus lurched. She quickly turned her eyes forward, regained control of the car.

"Sorry." Kurisuta said.

She glanced back at him. He's confident, determined.

"Who are you? Really?" Kurisuta said.

"You'll see soon enough." Loki said.

"You promised me answers." Kurisuta said.

Loki looked at her, charmed by her persistence.

"What your father seeks - it's a bridge." Loki said.

"A bridge? Like an Einstein-Rosen Bridge?" Kurisuta asked.

"More like a rainbow bridge." Loki said. "And that is all that I remember."

**Shield Base Over Lone Star Lake**

Now set up around the crater - vehicles, trailers, barricades. Armed guards manned a gate in the razor wire fence that ran fifty yards from the crater's edge, enclosing the complex.

Clear, plastic access tubes with junction boxes lead to a translucent cube structure erected in the middle of the frozen lake.

Through the glass walls of the base's command trailer, Coulson was directing technicians, busy at work.

Within the cube structure itself, a team of SHIELD scientists worked with high-tech machinery, analyzing the object at the center of it all - Mjolnir.

Kurisuta and Loki crawled to the edge of the ridge, looked through binoculars, saw the impressive SHIELD base.

"That isn't a satellite crash. They would have hauled the wreckage away, not built a city around it." Kurisuta said.

Loki shrugged out of his jacket and handed it to her.

"You're going to need this." Loki said.

"Why?-" Kurisuta asked.

The big fluffy white clouds turned dark and it began to snow in June. She stared at him intently and took his jacket.

"Stay here. Once I have Excalibur, I will return what they stole from your father." Loki said.

"You wish!" Kurisuta said. "I brought you this far. I'm coming with you."

Xxx

A needle spiked on a handheld sensor device. The technician holding it looked over at the sword at the bottom of the lake. Excalibur began to give off a subtle glow. The snow falling turned to ice and began swirling around the center of the lake.

A younger SHIELD agent, a techie in a headset, monitored security. Agent Sitwell, humorless, just this side of junior, looks on, none-too-pleased.

The Techie hiked a thumb at another monitor, squelching with static.

"Tech's barely working as it is, with all the interference that thing's giving off." The Techie said.

He gestured towards the sword. He checked a computer.

"Hey, we've got a commercial aircraft coming in right over us, Southwest Airlines Flight 5434." The Techie said.

"Reroute it, like all the others." Sitwell said.

"Right. Can I get the passengers some free drinks for the trouble?" The techie said.

Sitwell glared at him.

"It'd be a nice gesture." The Techie said.

The Techie typed into the computer, when he noticed something on another screen, held up a hand.

"Hold a sec... we got something outside the fence, west side..." The techie said.

He pointed at the screen. Through the haze, it showed a thermal image huddled beside the fence.

"DeLancey, Jackson - check it out." Sitwell said.

A pair of SHIELD agents took off in a jeep to investigate.

Sitwell looked out the window, something strange caught his attention. In the window's reflection a glow was coming from the sword containment area.

The jeep pulled up as the Agents scanned the fence with a flashlight, saw nothing unusual.

"Looks like we're good here. Must have been another coyote." Jackson said.

Just then, the Agents notice a section of the fence had been burned and melted, leaving a gap.

Before they could call it in, they saw a man and woman standing outside Jackson's side of the jeep. DeLancey looked over, noticed.

"Jackson?" DeLancey said.

The Agents reached for their weapons. Kurisuta touched both men on the chest and they fell to the ground, unconscious

Sitwell talked into his radio, starting to look worried.

"DeLancey, Jackson - report." Sitwell said.

Loki and Kurisuta, now wearing SHIELD rain slickers, made their way across the base.

Another SHIELD agent approached the jeep, spotted the unconscious DeLancey and Jackson. He quickly called into his radio.

"Agents down! We've got a perimeter breach!" The agent said.

Xxx

The security monitors squelched with static and interference.

Sitwell holds his PDA - even it was on the fritz. Sitwell and the Techie watched the monitors warily.

On the monitor showing the sword containment area, Excalibur starts to glow with energy beneath the frozen lake.

"Get Coulson." Sitwell said to the Techie.

Sitwell punched an alarm.

As Loki made his way towards the crater, an alarm sounded and security lights exploded to life.

Xxx

Coulson emerged from the SHIELD command trailer and marched across the mud, radio to his ear. He looked out across the lit up site uneasily.

Xxx

A SHIELD guard moves through the base, rifle in hand. From the shadows behind a trailer, a figure looked out at him.

As the Guard raised his radio to check in, Kurisuta quickly rushes towards him and tapped him on the chest. He fell to the ground.

Loki noticed the AR-15 rifle lying on the ground beside the fallen Guard. He stared down at the weapon quizzically. As more guards approached, Loki grabbed Kurisuta by the waist and took cover in the shadows of the trailer. The Guards passed by.

Loki and Kurisuta peered around the corner, saw the well-guarded main entrance tube to the center of the lake.

A bright light suddenly illuminates their faces. He looked to saw an ATV moving across the site, shining its spotlight right on him.

Loki and Kurisuta saw that the ATV driver had spotted them. The driver raised his radio to report. Kurisuta knocked him out in the same way as the others.

The ATV roared out of control past the Guards near the tube entrance. The Guards noticed and chase after it.

Loki and Kurisuta emerged from the shadows, watched the Guards abandoning the site entrance.

The vehicle careened over the edge of the lake and headed straight for one of the plastic tunnels. The Technicians inside scatter as the ATV crashed into it, tearing into the tunnel, sending sparks everywhere.

The ATV finally came to a stop, the tunnel collapsing around it and the Driver. SHIELD agents rushed in behind to help.

Coulson climbs to the edge of the lake as the sleet began to get worse. He eyed the damage of the ATV crash.

He was not pleased. The sleet blew into a snowstorm.

As SHIELD Agents pull the ATV driver from the wreckage, Loki and Kurisuta raced towards the unguarded entrance to the tunnels and headed inside.

Loki and Kurisuta raced up the entrance ramp. Before them, two guards round the corner.

Kurisuta knocked out the first Guard, then the second. They hurried around the corner, when more guards come up a ladder ahead. Kurisuta knocked out the closest Guard, sending him tumbling backwards, toppling the others on the ladder behind him.

Loki took off running, Kurisuta behind him, as the Guards regrouped and gave chase. Loki spotted the glow of Excalibur in the central cube, through the translucent walls of the tunnels. They hurried through to tunnels to find a way towards it.

Coulson stood on the edge of the lake, barking out orders, as the Guards in the tunnel rush to cut off Loki and Kurisuta.

Coulson activated his radio. "I want eyes up high. With a gun. Now!"

A sniper, dressed in black tactical gear and high-tech nightvision equipment, picked up a rifle, slung it over his shoulder and headed out.

His name was Clint Barton

Ice spread around the camp.

Barton approached a crane bucket. He leapt in, and the bucket lifts into the air.

Through the translucent plastic, Loki and Kurisuta raced through the tubing.

As Loki and Kurisuta raced through the tunnel, a guard ran right at Kurisuta,

on a collision course. Kurisuta took him out, then turned to see more agents coming towards her.

Loki picked up the fallen Guard, then threw him into the approaching Agents, scattering them.

Loki turned around, ran back the way he came. The Agents gave chase.

Coulson watched the commotion in the tunnel complex. He headed off for the command trailer to enter the tunnels.

The crane basket ascended into the high winds as Barton readied his sniper rifle.

Loki and Kurisuta were inside the complex, heading down a ladder from a junction box, with other figures converging on them.

Coulson entered the tunnels through the command trailer. He called on his radio.

"Barton. Talk to me." Coulson said.

The crane holding Barton arced out over the structure. Barton took aim.

"Two shots, two kills, sir. Just give the word." Barton said.

Overlooking the complex. It was a clear field of vision, nowhere to hide. A digital read-out gave information on the distance to the target. He locked in on Loki and Kurisuta, who were inside the plastic tubing, emerging from the junction box and heading towards the cube structure.

"Hello, handsome." Barton said.

Loki raced through the tunnel, came across a wall of agents. Kurisuta knocked them all out—

whatever it took to keep moving.

As Kurisuta took down the last Agent, Loki saw the last junction box and the entrance to the cube structure up ahead.

He raced towards it. He could actually see Excalibur at the bottom of the lake, when BAM!

Kurisuta threw a fireball in the center of the lake, peeling off her jacket and down to her tank top and shorts. She dove into the ice cold lake, and swam to the bottom, before Loki could stop her. She gripped the sword, and instantly, blue and black frostbite skittered up her arm.

She gasped her breath, choking on icy water and trying to swim up but the sword pulled her down.

Loki caught his breath, terrified of this woman's death, knowing who she was to him, knowing he could not let her die. Loki removed the SHIELD rain slicker and the shirt she had loaned him, unsure if ice would damage his mortal form. Then—he dove in.

As Loki dove in after Kurisuta, Excalibur started to glow brighter, green magic skittering across the scabbard and hilt. The green magic seemed to reach out to him. Coulson noticed, his interest piqued.

Above the open ceiling of the structure, Barton's crane bucket came into view.

Wind and rain whipped around Barton as he stared into his rifle site, locked on the back of Loki's head - his finger on the trigger.

Loki swam down and found Kurisuta. He gently freed her blue knuckled grasp from the hilt and reached out to take the sword from her.

Coulson watched from above. An armed agent approached behind him. He motioned for them to hold their positions, then radioed Barton.

"Barton..." Coulson said.

Barton stood ready to take Loki down. His finger started to squeeze the trigger.

"...hold your fire." Coulson said.

Barton released the trigger, pulled up.

Coulson watched Loki with anticipation as Loki wrapped his hand around the sword's hilt. He lifted the sword, his other arm around Kurisuta's waist as he brought her to the surface. Her body was very pale, shaking and much too cold.

Loki dropped Excalibur next to them as he began CPR on her still cold body. As he proceeded, the sword began to glow with green magic, and the magic spread to Loki. The magic then poured into Kurisuta, her body warming and jerking slightly and then she sat up.

Coulson looked on, excited.

SHIELD agents moved in, guns trained on Kurisuta and Loki, surrounding him. Coulson activates his radio.

"Ground units, move in. Show's over." Coulson said.

Kurisuta moved to shimmer them out of there. Loki put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't," Loki said. "I want to see what these men are about.

Guards approached Loki and Kurisuta, capturing them.

**Heimdall's Observatory**

Heimdall stood at his post, watching the scene. He brightened, proud of Loki's decision.


	13. Freedom

Rei picked up the book Selvig checked out of the library, looked through it.

Rei pointed at an illustration of the Sword of Winters in the book.

"Hey! Eikus Cali Werr!" Rei looked at the illustration in the book, turned to Selvig knowingly.

"Where did you find this?"

Selvig grabbed the book from them, quickly closed it. "In the children's section. I wanted to show you how ridiculous this all was."

Rei was unconvinced by this. She knew he wanted to believe.

"Aren't you the one who's always told us to chase down all leads, all possibilities?" Rei asked.

"I was talking about science, not magic!" Selvig said.

"Magic's just science we don't understand yet. Arthur C. Clarke." Rei said.

"Who wrote science fiction." Selvig said.

"The precursor of science fact." Rei said.

"In some cases." Selvig said.

"If that's really an Einstein-Rosen Bridge out there, then there's something on the other side." Rei said. "Advanced beings could have come through it before."

"Rei..." Selvig said.

"A primitive culture like the Vikings might have worshipped them as deities." Rei said.

"Rei, if you do this, you'll find yourself in a situation that I won't be able to get you out of this time." Selvig said.

Rei looked stubborn. Selvig looked at her, saw there was no stopping her. He sighed.

**SHIELD Holding Cell**

Loki sat in a chair, staring forward blankly, hands cuffed behind him, smirking. Coulson stood across from him. The second he had recovered his magic, he had cast an enchantment so all of SHIELD believed it was he who had knocked out all the Agents. As a result, he was in maximum security, and Kurisuta was in minimum, waiting for the signal.

"It's not easy to do what you did. You made us all look like a bunch of mall cops. That's hurtful." Coulson said. "The men you so easily subdued are highly-trained professionals, and in my experience, it takes someone who's received similar training to do what you did to them. Would you like to tell me where you received your training?"

Loki sat silently.

"Pakistan? Chechnya? Afghanistan?" Coulson said. "Then again, you strike me more as the soldier of fortune type. What was it, South Africa?"

Still no answer. Coulson leaned in close to him.

"Certain groups pay well for a good mercenary. Especially HYDRA." Coulson waited for a response, but got none. "Who are you?"

Loki's smirk widened. "I am Loki Odinson of Asgard, and I am burdened with glorious purpose."

Coulson's frown depended. "One way or another, we find out what we want to know. We're good at that."

Coulson left the room.

Loki smiled and whispered, "I thought he'd never leave."

Kurisuta shimmered into the room. "Was I that obvious?"

"You have no secrets from me," Loki said.

"I had to see you." Kurisuta said. "Here's the plan..."

She told him her plan as she had seen in her premonition, and then shimmered out.

"Now. Where did we leave off?" Coulson said

Sitwell entered and spoke to Coulson. "Sir... they have a visitor."

**Security Room**

Coulson and several other SHIELD agents stood across from Erik Selvig.

"Leonard Blake?" Coulson said.

"Doctor Leonard Blake. He's part of our team." Selvig said. "Kurisuta is my daughter."

"You have dangerous coworkers, Dr. Selvig." Coulson said.

"Troubled, not dangerous. He was distraught when he found out that you'd taken all of our research." Selvig said. "It was years of his life, gone! He got depressed, started drinking, and... well, you know the rest."

"Uh-huh. You mind if we take a moment to verify his identity?" Coulson said.

"Certainly." Selvig said.

The Techie at a computer nearby ran the name.

"You can understand how a man could go off like that. I mean, a big, faceless organization like yours, coming in with their jack-booted thugs and stealing private property..." Selvig said. "...is how he described it."

"That doesn't explain how he managed to tear through our security." Coulson said.

Selvig shrugged. "Steroids. He's a bit of a fitness nut."

On the Techie's monitor, a DMV record from the State of New York pops up reading "Dr Leonard Blake". The license photo was indeed a picture of Loki - from the video Rei took with her cellphone.

The Techie hits a button, and a graphic reads, "SHIELD Security Analysis in Progress." Coulson eyed the screen.

After a beat, he turned back to Selvig.

"It says here he's an M.D." Coulson said.

"He is. That is, he was. He switched careers and became a physicist. He's quite brilliant, really." Selvig said. "If you would just release him to me, I promise to keep an eye on him."

Coulson was lost in thought, sizing Selvig up - then smiled. He turned to an agent nearby.

"Release Dr. Blake to Dr. Selvig here." Coulson said. "And release his daughter too."

The Techie looked to him, surprised.

"Make sure he stays in town for the next few days in case we need to talk to him again." Coulson said.

Selvig shook his hand.

"Thank you."

**Holding Cell**

Selvig burst into the room with a SHIELD Agent to find a seated Loki.

"Leo, Leo, Leo! There you are!" Selvig said.

"It's great to see you too, Erik," Loki said, playing along as planned.

Selvig pulled Loki to his feet, gave him a warm hug.

"It's going to be all right, my friend. Come on, I'm taking you home." Selvig said.

"Alright," Loki said. "Kurisuta is right next door."

He lead the bewildered Loki out the door. They walked next door and picked up Kurisuta.

"Thank you for coming, Dad," Kurisuta said.

Selvig sighed. "I couldn't just leave you here."

As Thor and Selvig mad their way past the SHIELD Security Room, Loki noticed Selvig's possessions and equipment from the lab stacked under a tarp. He spotted Selvig's handwritten journal among them. As he passed, he quickly took it from the pile and pocketed it.

**Security Room**

Coulson looked at the computer bearing Donald Blake's DMV record. A security warning over the image clearly read "Security Alert: Falsified Data." He knew it was a ruse all along.

He looked to Selvig, Kurisuta and Loki heading away from the Security Room, then followed them outside.

**Outside**

Coulson and two SHIELD Agents watch as Selvig walked with Loki away from the base to the SUV. Coulson called to Selvig.

"Just keep him away from the bars." Coulson said.

"I will!" Selvig said.

"Where are we going?" Loki asked.

Selvig dropped his cool demeanor.

"To get a drink." Selvig said.

Kurisuta looked troubled by this as she, Selvig and Loki climbed into the SUV.

As they drove off, Coulson turned to the other two agents - Garrett and Cale.

"Follow them." Coulson said.


	14. Premonition

**Jotunhiem**

_A tall woman with long blonde and red hair and a green dress walked alone across the icy surface of the planet._

**Laufey's Temple**

_Darkness shrouded the ruined temple, save for the shafts of light which knife their way in through the damaged ceiling._

_Cosmos entered. Frost Giant guards surrounded her on all sides._

_Laufey approached, same height as the goddess. _

"_What have we done to offend you, esteemed goddess?" Laufey asked, a tone of fear in his voice._

"_It is not you, but your son that offends," Cosmos said sharply._

"_I have no son," protested Laufey._

"_Previously I have taken all grievances with this child up with Odin, the god who adopted him," Cosmos said. "But now he breaks my taboo a second time. Jotunhiem will be forfeit. Unless..."_

_Laufey listened closely, eager for a way out of the wrath of a primordial deity._

"_I will conceal you and a handful of your soldiers, lead you into his chambers, and let you slay him where he lies. Thor will take the throne, and you will take Loki and his Sword of Winters." Cosmos said._

"_Why would you do this?" Laufey asked._

"_Communication between Asgard and Midgard is forbidden," quoted Cosmos. "This is the will of the gods, and thus is absolute." _

"_I accept." Laufey said. "Anything to keep our goddess' wrath at bay." _

_Cosmos vanished in a swirl of shimmering lights._

**Bar**

Selvig drove to the lab to drop off a pretending-to-sleep Kurisuta, then headed to a bar

Loki and Selvig sat at a booth at the back of the local dive. The bartender sat down a couple mugs of beer and two shots of whiskey. Selvig poured the shot into his mug and downed it.

Loki sipped the mug.

"Seems Rei's a talented hacker." Selvig said.

"Thank you for what you've done." Loki said.

"Don't thank me. I only did it for Kurisuta." Selvig said.

"Your daughter?" Loki said.

"Yes, she and Rei are my daughters," Selvig eyed him with interest. "I don't know who or what you are and I don't care. I just care about Kurisuta. I've seen the way she looks at you.

"I swear to you, I mean her no harm." Loki said.

"Good. If that's the case, then I'll buy you one more drink, and you'll leave town tonight." Selvig said.

A long pause, then Loki nodded. He took a drink.

"Hey, I know you, man..." a drunk man said. He approached, belligerent and looking for a fight.

"You were in the diner with that hot girl."

Loki didn't like where this was going.

"I wouldn't mind her doing a little research on me." He laughed.

Loki was annoyed. "I have no quarrel with you. But she's a lady. You should be more respectful."

"And you should shut the hell up!" The townie said.

Selvig looked to Loki, concerned that he was going to lose it. But, to his surprise, Loki remained unaffected by the Townie's baiting.

"I will not fight him." Loki said.

"Then it'll be easy to kick your ass." The townie said.

Selvig stood, stepped between the two men.

"Gentlemen, please. Let's keep our heads." Selvig said.

Just then, Selvig head-butted the Townie, knocking him out.

Loki was impressed. Selvig downed his drink, then hurled his glass aside, shattered it on the ground. "Another drink?"

**Kurisuta's Trailer**

The small trailer was in a state of perpetual disarray, strewn with various books, old pizza boxes, etc. A worried Kurisuta lay on her bed, trying to read.

She was startled by the loud rapping on the door. She bolted to the door and opened it to find -Loki, Standing there with the unconscious Selvig slung over his shoulder.

"Dad!" Kurisuta said. "Is he all right?"

"He's fine. Not injured at all." Loki said.

As Loki entered, he banged Selvig's head on the doorway.

Selvig groaned.

"Sorry, my friend." Loki said.

"What happened?" Kurisuta said.

"Just a bit of an argument." Loki said. "Nothing to worry about."

"Put him on the bed." Kurisuta said.

Loki moved through the small trailer carrying Selvig, like a bear lugging another bear, smashing into things along the way, until he finally set Selvig down on Kurisuta's bed. Selvig awakened groggily and looked up at him through bleary eyes.

"I still don't believe you're the God of Mischief." Selvig said. "But you ought to be."

As Selvig drifted off to sleep, Loki pulled a blanket over him.

Kurisuta watched, stunned by their friendship, impressed by Loki's tenderness. Loki turned back to her, looked around.

"These are your chambers?" Loki said.

Kurisuta suddenly became self-conscious. She started cleaning up the mess around her.

"Well, it's more of a temporary living space, really. I don't usually have visitors in here. Actually, never..." Kurisuta said.

Loki picked up a sock off the floor, amused. She snatched it from him, put it away.

"I have something to tell you," Kurisuta said. "Can we go outside?"

Thor stepped off a ladder onto the roof of the lab. He offered Kurisuta his hand, helped her up. There's a telescope set up, a couple chairs, some blankets.

"I come up here sometimes when I can't sleep. Or when I'm trying to figure out my Dad's research. Or when Rei's driving me crazy." Kurisuta said. "I come up here a lot, now that I think about it."

Loki looked at the night sky, filled with stars.

"I had a vision, Loki," Kurisuta said, then told him about the goddess Cosmos' visit to Jotunheim and her deal with Laufey..

"I'm glad you're safe." Kurisuta said. "But you need to get back to Asgard and save Odin."

"And how am I supposed to do that?" Loki asked. "Every night I ask Hiemdall to open the Bifrost to me but he does not answer."

Kurisuta swallowed. "Tomorrow. Tomorrow, I have a feeling, everything is going to come to a head. I'm going to be there to support you."

"You've been very kind. I've been far less grateful than you deserve." Loki said.

"I also hit you with my car a couple times, so it kind of evens out." Kurisuta said.

He smirked, then reached into his pocket and pulled out her father's notebook.

"I don't believe it..." Kurisuta said.

She took it from him, surprised and grateful.

"It was all I could get back. Not as much as I promised. I'm sorry." Loki said.

"No, this is good. Thank you. This means he doesn't have to start from scratch..." Kurisuta said.

She sat down and opened the notebook eagerly, then stopped, a harsh realization clouding her face. Loki noticed.

"What's wrong?" Loki asked.

"SHIELD, whatever they are. They're never going to let this research see the light of day." Kurisuta said. "And I don't understand this."

"Then I'll help," Loki said.

Loki moved beside her, opened her notebook, turned to the page which bore a sketch of the Bifrost. He took the pen from the notebook, began to add to the sketch, leading from one point to another in space.

"Look - you and your family call it magic. The mortals call it science. I come from a place where they're one and the same thing." Loki said.

Loki was drawing the branches of Yggdrasil as Kurisuta looked on, amazed and intrigued.

"Goshinboku?" Kurisuta asked.

"What's that?" Loki was surprised.

"The Sacred Tree," Kurisuta said. "It grows behind our house and connects us to the Otherworld."

"Well that sounds similar to what we believe," Loki said. "This is how my father explained it to me...Your world is one of the Nine Realms of the Cosmos, linked to each other by the branches of Yggdrasil, the Worlds Tree. So, Nine Realms..."

They looked at each other. She nodded. They smiled. This was going to be a long night.


	15. Spying

**Roof**

Kurisuta slept beside Loki on the blankets on the rooftop. He stared up at the night sky. She rolled close to him, nuzzles against him in her sleep. He looked down at her, beautiful in the moonlight, looked out at the town beyond her.

Dawn breaks over the quiet town of Lawrence.

Loki awakened, looked down to see Kurisuta still sleeping, nuzzled against him. She opened her eyes, looked up at him and smiles.

He stood, offered his hand, helped her to her feet.

Loki helped Kurisuta down off a ladder. A groggy, hungover Selvig emerged from Kurisuta's trailer. He saw Loki with Kurisuta. Selvig eyed the two of them together, then:

"I need some coffee." Selvig said.

The three headed inside Smith Motors.

Library Rooftop Across the Street

SHIELD Agents Garrett and Cale watched the scene, pointing a small audio surveillance device towards the lab.

**Selvig Lab**

Rei and Selvig sat at a card table, drinking coffee. Loki held a couple plates as Kurisuta made eggs on a hotplate. She scooped them out onto the plates. Loki took them over to the table, set them down before Selvig and Rei.

"Thanks." Rei said.

"You're very welcome." Loki said.

Kurisuta joined them at the card table with a couple more plates. She and Loki sat with the others and started to eat their breakfast, looking like a little family.

**Library Rooftop Across the Street**

Agents Garrett and Cale continued their surveillance, bored out of their wits. Agent Cale watches the group through the lab window with binoculars. Agent Garrett listened to his comm-link, turns to Cale.

"They want an update." Agent Garrett said.

"Tell them he's eating eggs." Agent Cale said.

"Scrambled or fried?" Agent Garrett said.

Cale glared at him.

"Target is eating eggs, sir." Agent Cale said into his com-link. "We'll keep you posted."

Selvig Lab

As the group finished breakfast, Loki looked at the mug in his hand, and got an idea.

"May I have this?" Loki asked.

"Sure." Rei said.

"Thank you. Excuse me a moment." Loki said.

Loki left.

**Main Street**

In front of her diner, Isabela prepared to open for the day.

Through the window of Isabela's, chairs were still atop tables.

Isabel swept the front porch. She looks up to see Loki approaching. She smiled appreciatively. He handed her a mug, which was now full of coffee.

"I attempted to make the coffee I enjoyed," Loki said in Spanish. "Would you do me the honor, dear lady?"

Isabel smiled and sipped the coffee, and responded in Spanish. "You have done well but the taste is a bit sharp; it needs a bit of sweetness. What beans did you use?"

"That, my dear lady, is a secret," Loki smiled and left the mug with Isabela, walking away.

Isabel stared after him, smiling, and shrugged. "She could do worse."

**SHIELD Base on Lone Star Lake, Security Room**

Coulson raced in as a SHIELD techie called up satellite footage of the Bifrost storm on a monitor.

"What the hell was that?" Coulson said.

"I don't know, sir. We got massive energy readings out of nowhere, then they just disappeared. Fifteen miles due northwest." The techie said.

"Let's go take a look." Coulson said.


	16. Thor's Landing

**Bifrost Landing Site**

Amidst the fury of the Bifrost storm, Thor dropped to the ground in the New Mexico desert. They clambered to their feet as the Bifrost quickly receded, the hole in the sky closed up behind it. The Bifrost runes covered the cornfield around them.

"He must have landed nearby." Thor said, then looked to the town of Lawrence in the distance - the only visible sign of civilization.

"It's worth a look, I suppose." Thor said.

He tromped towards the town.

**Main Street**

Townsfolk stared in wonder at Thor, as he strolled down the street in all his Asgardian splendor.

A boy hits a baseball, which rolled under a parked car. He ran to retrieve it, but couldn't reach it. Suddenly, the side of the car rose into the air. The boy looked over, his mouth dropping open at what he saw. Thor easily held the car up with one hand.

Thor picked up the boy's ball, then dropped the car. He handed the ball back to the boy, tousling his hair.

"There you go, lad!" Thor said.

The boy just stared, standing frozen. Thor headed off.

**Library Rooftop**

Agents Cale and Garrett spotted Thor walking down the street.

"Is there a Renaissance Faire in town?" Agent Garrett said.

"Call it in." Agent Cale said.

But before they could, Thor rose up behind them, smashed their heads together. They were out.

"Never cared for spies." Thor said.

He started to go, then saw their bag of fast food on the ground. Intrigued, he pulled out a cheeseburger and took a bite. He liked what he tasted.

"Exquisite." Thor said.

Asgardian Palace

Cosmos approached Heimdall on the Rainbow Bridge.

"Tell me, goddess, how was your audience with Laufey?" Heimdall asked.

"It does not matter that you were watching," Cosmos said. "You will tell no one."

Heimdall raised his massive sword, strode towards Cosmos. Cosmos reached out and, with both hands, took hold of something invisible, hovering in mid-air before her. As it quickly fades into view, we realize what it is - her staff.

Cosmos attacked him with her power, and he collapsed, just before taking off her head with his sword.

**Heimdall's Observatory**

Cosmos inserted her staff into the Observatory's control panel and opened the Bifrost. She gestured, and the veiled Destroyer appeared before him, a fiery glow rising within it. It turned its head toward Cosmos'.

"Ensure the Asgardians do not return." Cosmos said.

**Selvig Lab**

Kurisuta, Loki, Rei, and Selvig make a charming team, tidying up after breakfast - washing, drying, and putting plates and utensils away.

The door opened.

"Found you!" Thor said.

Loki, Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei turned to see -Thor.

Staring baffled at the sight of the domestic Loki drying dishes in mortal clothing.

Kurisuta dropped a plate. It went shattering on the floor.

"Brother!" Loki said.

Thor happily raced over and greeted his brother.

Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei watched Thor from across the room. Kurisuta looked concerned. Selvig and Rei eyed him with wonder.

"I don't believe it..." Selvig said.

"Who are they?" Rei said.

"I am Thor Odinson," Thor said. "God of Thunder."

Thor grinned, laid a hand on Loki's shoulder.

"My brother, I've never been happier to see anyone. But you should not have come." Loki said. "I have been banished, and Father and Mother need you to protect them in Asgard."

"I'm here to take you home." Thor said.

Kurisuta looked sad at to the news of Loki leaving.

"You know I can't. I must remain in exile." Loki said. "Father commanded it."

Thor was puzzled.

"Loki... your father is in the Odinsleep. Asgard needs you." Thor said.

Loki was shocked by the revelation.


	17. Destroyer Battle

**Bifrost Landing Site**

A few SHIELD vehicles were parked by the Bifrost site. A few SHIELD agents stood nearby as scientists took readings.

Coulson knelt, examined the Bifrost Runes. He turned to an Agent.

"Get somebody from Linguistics out here." Coulson said.

Just then, they heard a rumbling overhead, as the Bifrost storm roared in the sky above.

Coulson and the SHIELD Agents scrambled for cover, their vehicle windshields shattering, as the Bifrost storm grew in strength. Finally, the hole in the sky overhead opened, and the funnel cloud exploded out of it, touching down onto the desert floor.

Coulson and the Agents sheltered their eyes from the maelstrom.

**Main Street**

Loki and the others saw the Bifrost storm forming in the distance.

"Was somebody else coming?" Rei asked.

Just then, the Bifrost funnel exploded down to the ground.

**Bifrost Landing Site**

From behind a jeep, Coulson and the SHIELD agents stared at the Destroyer in awe. It moved towards them.

"Is that one of Stark's?" A SHIELD agent said.

"I don't think so. But the guy doesn't tell me anything." Coulson grabbed a megaphone, stepped forward, called out to the Destroyer. "Hello! You're using unregistered weapons technology. Please identify yourself."

There was a hum as the Destroyer's fiery energy powered up inside.

"Incoming!" Coulson said.

As the SHIELD Agents scrambled for cover, a blast of energy from the Destroyer exploded a vehicle. SHIELD agents returned fire.

**Main Street**

Townspeople filled the streets, staring at the fire fight in the distance. Loki and Thor prepared for battle, as Loki turned to Kurisuta.

"Leave this town now. Get yourself and your friends to safety." Loki said.

"What about you?" Kurisuta said.

"I must stay and fight." Loki said.

Thor looked to Loki.

"I am a warrior, and I will fight by your side." Thor said.

"The best thing you can do is get the mortals to safety and then join the battle." Loki said.

Thor looked at the townsfolk around them, all oblivious to the oncoming threat.

"You're right." Thor said.

Loki looked surprised. Thor turned to Selvig, and Rei.

"Help me clear the streets. I'll let none of these people die this day." Thor said.

Thor, Kurisuta, Selvig, and Rei start to herd the crowd of Townsfolk off the streets, as Loki and Kurisuta headed across town, towards the Destroyer.

**Heimdall's Observatory**

Laufey and two Frost Giants appeared out of the Bifrost and stepped onto the platform. Cosmos was waiting for them. She pulled Gungnir from the Observatory's control panel. The giant apparatus slowed to a stop.

"Laufey. Welcome to Asgard." Cosmos said.

**Bifrost Landing Site**

The site looked like the aftermath of a war zone. The smoldering wreckage of SHIELD vehicles lay strewn about.

**Down the Street**

Thor, Rei, and Selvig cleared the streets, loading confused townsfolk into cars, moving others indoors.

A dog made it way down the street, barking at something in front of it. Then it was there - the Destroyer.

The Destroyer strode down the street, a red, fiery energy glowing from within it.

It unleashed blasts as it went, blowing up cars, setting storefronts aflame.

Loki and Kurisuta headed down the street towards the Destroyer.

"Keep him distracted." Kurisuta said.

She hurried off. Loki continued towards the behemoth.

**Main Street**

Thor looked anxiously back down the street, where Loki got into position before the Destroyer.

"I must get to Loki," Thor said. "He needs me at his side."

Rei hurried out of the burning pet store carrying as many animals in cages as she can, then loaded them into a truck.

Loki unsheathed Excalibur and attacked the Destroyer. With one swing he froze the fire within.

It looked like it was going to work, when the Destroyer reignited and started to fire.

Kurisuta leapt off a nearby rooftop and used her empathy to borrow the power of molecular combustion from her sister. She threw out her hands and the Destroyer exploded.

They had a brief moment of hope.

But the creature reassembled. Kurisuta looked on with growing trepidation.

Slowly, unnaturally, the Destroyer spins its torso around 180 degrees to face its attackers.

The Destroyer unleashed a blast at Kurisuta. She barely dove off of the behemoth in time, dodging the blast. The Destroyer rose again to its full height.

Loki and Kurisuta to regroup, when the Destroyer unleashed another blast, sending Loki and Kurisuta flying in all directions.

Thor saw them lying injured on the ground, but had no time to act, as the Destroyer fired in his direction.

A storefront near Selvig Labs exploded, knocking Thor, Rei, and Selvig off their feet. Thor helped Rei to her feet, when they noticed Selvig lying on his back amidst the debris, impaled by a twisted piece of iron.

"Dad!" Rei shouted.

She and Thor hurried to his side. He was losing blood, going into shock.

"Go! Leave me!" Selvig said.

Rei took his hand calmly, then winked and Thor. "Don't watch if you're squeamish."

Then before his eyes she transformed, little orange fox ears that matched her hair peaking out, and six matching fox tails. She had face markings too.

Thor was very surprised. "You never said you were one of the Fae folk."

"That's fairy fox," Rei said, annoyed. "Or kitsune, if you wanna get technical."

She put her hands on Selvig's wound and gold light stitched his wounds painlessly together. She smiled. "All better."

Selvig sat up and groaned at Rei. "I told you not to do that in public."

"It was an emergency." She protested.

Rei turned to Thor to find he's gone.

**Down the Street**

Loki reached Kurisuta, who lay dazed, battered, and bloodied on the ground. He pulled her behind a burning vehicle.

"Go, while you can!" Loki said.

"But the others..." Kurisuta said.

"You can't help them now. Your job is to survive." Loki said.

She struggled to sit up.

"No! I will die a warrior's death. Stories will be told of this day-" Kurisuta said.

He gently took her hands in his.

"Live and tell those stories yourself." Loki said.

"You look different," Kurisuta said, indicating him. Loki then realized that Excalibur had brought out his Jotun form. "It's a good different. Another thing, I want you to call me Kuri."

And with those words Kuri stood up, body turning a bright red color and blue Celtic knot tattoos running down her face, arms, and back. The star birthmark on her forehead darkened to black.

"Don't worry, Loki. I have a plan." Kuri said.

She opened her hands, and a fireball appeared in them. She threw it at the Destroyer, causing it to stumble back. She then created a ball of electricity and threw it, causing the Destroyer to go limp for a moment.

The Destroyer hesitates, then swatted her with its enormous arm. There was a sickening crack of breaking bones as Kuri went flying.

Kuri landed in a crumpled, broken heap in front of Selvig Labs, before Loki, Thor, Selvig, and Rei.

Loki tried to rush out to Kuri's aid, but Thor held him back.

"This is her planet," Thor said. "She'll never forgive you if you don't let her defend it."

He pulled Loki into Selvig Labs. A Raven flew overhead, watching the scene -

**Odin's Chambers**

Odin lay in the Odinsleep.

A single tear rolled down the Allfather's cheek.

Main Street

Kuri's eyes closed, her breath coming in shuddering gasps. The Destroyer stood over Kuri's body, lowered its head towards her. It opens its faceplate, locks it in place, readying to unleash its fiery blast.

Kuri smirked, and recovered, revealing that all was a ruse, and shimmering away as the blast hit the ground where she lay seconds ago.

Kuri stood in front of Thor and Loki. "Up to you guys now. I've done all I can."

"What say you brother?" Loki asked.

"I say we finish this, together," Thor said, brandishing Mjolnir.

A blinding bolt of lightning struck down from above, colliding with the Destroyer. At the same time, pillars of sharp ice burst from the earth, from where Loki had struck with Excalibur and one penetrated the Destroyer's armor. The explosion was massive. The Destroyer was frozen and crackling with electricity at the same time. Smoke and mist enveloped the street.

Kuri stepped forward, and so did Rei, now roused and ready to fight once more, ready to finish this. Kuri opened her hands and an electric fire ball appeared. She levitated into the air—and jammed it down the Destroyer's faceplate.

"Steady...steady..." said Rei, holding out her hands. She then threw her hands out and the combustive ball inside the Destroyer exploded. This time, it was in so many pieces, it would never reassemble.

Selvig stand to join his daughters and his new friends, as the battle was over. A battered Coulson approached with several SHIELD agents.

"Leonard... I don't think you've been completely honest with me." Coulson said to Loki.


	18. Returning Home

**Bifrost Landing Site**

Loki, Thor, Kuri, Rei, and Selvig stood in the cornfield with Coulson, and several SHIELD agents.

Loki called up to the sky.

"Heimdall! Open the Bifrost!"

**Rainbow Bridge**

Heimdall remained collapsed.

**Bifrost Landing Site**

Loki looked to the others with concern. "He would open it if he could. I fear the worst."

"Then we're trapped here forever." Thor said. "Then I suppose we'd best start settling into our new lives."

He looked to Rei, turned on the charm.

"Are all earth maidens as fair as you?"

Rei enjoyed the attention. "No."

Loki shouted back up to the sky. "Heimdall!"

**Rainbow Bridge**

From inside the ice, Heimdall heard Loki calling to him. Knowing that the fate of Asgard depends on him, he mustered all his strength. With a tremendous effort, Heimdall stood.

Weakened, near death, he dragged himself inside the Observatory.

**Bifrost Landing Site**

Thor and Loki began to lose hope. Thor eyed a SHIELD Agent's machine gun.

"Primitive. Good enough for hunting small game, I suppose." Thor said.

Suddenly, the Bifrost exploded down from the sky. Loki smiled. The mortals looked on, amazed. Thor turned to Rei.

"Sorry, my love. These things happen." Thor said.

He joined Loki at his side. Loki turned to Coulson.

"Know this, son of Coul. You and I, we fight for the same cause - the protection of this world. From this day forward, count me as your ally." Loki said. "If you return the items you have stolen from Erik Selvig."

"Not stolen. Borrowed." Coulson said.

Kuri shot him a look. Coulson quickly continued.

"You'll get your equipment back." Coulson said. "You're going to need it to continue your research... which, after today's events, SHIELD would like to fully sponsor. If that's all right with you."

Loki took Kuri's hand, kissed it tenderly. She looked at him, her eyes filled with the fear that she may never see him again.

"Whatever fate lies before me, you are part of it." Loki said.

He took her in his arms, kissed her passionately, then went to enter the Bifrost. But in a split second, Kuri followed Loki and Thor to Asgard.


	19. Laufey Battle

**Hiemdall's Observatory**

The three emerged from the Bifrost to find Heimdall slumped over his controls.

"Get him to the healing room! Leave Laufey to me." Loki said.

Loki bolted out the door.

**Odin's Chambers**

Odin lay in the Odinsleep, Frigga at his bedside. She heard the shouts of Guards outside, the sound of a battle. Frigga grabbed a sword.

A Frost Giant burst in. She swung the sword around hard, cleaving into his shoulder. He swatted her aside angrily.

Laufey and the Brute Frost Giant enter.

Laufey looked at Odin lying helpless on the bed.

The Jotun king stood over the unconscious Odin, relishing the moment.

He formed an ice blade.

Laufey stood before the sleeping Odin.

"It's said you can still see and hear what transpires around you, even in this state. I hope it's true, so that you may know your death came by the hand of Laufey.

He raised his blade above Odin's body, when -

A blast of energy Hit him from behind. As the Jotun king fell to the ground, it was Loki who struck him down with Excalibur.

"And your death came by the son of Odin." Loki said.

Laufey escaped the room as the other two shocked Frost Giants moved for Loki. Kuri shimmered in and blasted fireballs at one, taking him out.

The Brute was nearly upon him, when the Jotun stopped suddenly, his eyes going wide. The Brute fell to the ground, revealing Frigga Standing behind him - the sword stuck in his back. She looked to Loki, takes him in her arms.

Kuri looked at Loki. "We have to get back to the Observatory. Laufey lives."

She took his hand and they shimmered, meeting Thor at the Observatory.

**Heimdall's Observatory **

Laufey operated the Observatory's controls. The massive turret spun, pointed.

"Midgard," gasped Thor as the Bifrost roared to life.

Loki entered, shielded his eyes from the brilliant light of the Bifrost energy blasting towards Jotunheim.

He looked over to the controls, sees that they're frozen in an enormous block of ice. Laufey stands atop it.

"All these years, and no one's ever dared to use it as a weapon." Laufey said.

Thor hurried to the ice, raised his hammer to smash through it to get to the controls frozen within. Before he could, Loki stopped him.

"If you do that you will crush the controls," Loki said. "We can't stop it now. The Bifrost will build until it rips Midgard apart. Kuri's home..."

"Why have you done this?" Thor demanded.

"To fulfill the law of the gods," Laufey said. "Communication between Asgard and Midgard is forbidden. There must be consequences."

The two attacked Laufey in much the same way they had attacked the Destroyer. Thor struck him with lightning and Loki impaled him with ice, and then they both struck him with their weapons in a finishing blow. Laufey slumped, dead. But it did not save Midgard.

**Bifrost Landing Site**

Selvig, Rei, and Coulson looked up with concern at the hole in the sky, where excess Bifrost energy built up around it.

"Dad?" Rei said.

"Something's wrong." Selvig said.

**Heimdall's Observatory**

Loki looked about him desperately - at the Bifrost firing towards Midgard, gaining in strength, at the surge of energy moving through the Bridge. He's at a loss of what to do.

Loki realized what he must do - and what he must sacrifice. He looked at Kuri. "I'm so sorry."

"Thor!" Loki nodded, knowing his brother had the same thought.

Thor raised Mjolnir in the air. Clouds formed above him, thunder RUMBLING. Lightning arcs off of his hammer, as he channeled the power of the storm into it, then - He struck Mjolnir down upon the Rainbow Bridge. The blow was massive, causing a rumbling along the whole bridge, shaking the Observatory itself like an earthquake. A crack appeared where the blow struck. Kuri was horror struck and betrayed. They were going to maroon her here?

"Stop! What are you doing?!" Kuri shouted.

Thor lifted the hammer again, brought it down harder. BOOM!

The crack grew bigger. The Bifrost energy started to stream out from it. Kuri thought fast.

"If you destroy the Bridge, I can never go home again!" Kuri shouted

"Forgive me." Loki said. "It was my idea."

Summoning every bit of strength he has left, Thor raised Mjolnir one last time, drawing lightning to it from all sides, and brought it down with a final, terrible blow. The Bifrost shattered, rainbow energy exploding out of it.

Kuri, Loki and Thor were hurled into the air by the force of the blast. A wave of destruction moved forward along the Bridge towards the Observatory, breaking it apart as it went.

The Observatory ripped itself apart.

As Kuri, Loki and Thor fall together, Thor grabbed hold of one of Loki's hands, while Kuri still clutched the other. They all fell towards the massive wave of Bifrost energy which spewed out from the broken Bridge.

They were an instant from being blasted by the destructive force of the energy, carried away by the current, pulverized by the debris, when - a powerful hand caught Thor's leg.

Thor dangled there, holding onto Loki as Kuri clung onto his other hand. Loki looked up, shocked to see Odin Allfather Standing on the edge of the broken Bridge, awakened from the Odinsleep, restored to his full strength.

Kuri searched Loki's face, looking for some kind of reason why he had betrayed her, but all she saw was deep regret.

Kuri let go.

"No!" Loki shouted.

But it's too late. Odin, Thor and Loki could only watch as Kuri fell into the rushing torrent of Bifrost energy. It carried her away, along with the debris of the Bridge and the Observatory, disappearing out of sight.

Odin pulled Thor and Loki up onto the Bridge. Drained, Thor and Loki fell back into their father's arms.

"It is over." Odin said.

**Bifrost Landing Site**

The Bifrost energy exploded in the sky like fireworks firing in all directions. Selvig, Rei, and Coulson stood watching in amazement.

Rei looked back up at the sky, distraught. She knew the significance of what's just happened.

"She's gone." Rei said.


	20. Loose Ends

**Odin's Palace**

A feast was in progress as Thor, Loki Sif, and the Warriors Three sat amongst the gathered Asgardians. Thor was in the middle of recounting their battle with the Destroyer.

"...and then, with a mighty bellow, I flew at the great metal beast and laid it low..." Thor said.

Frigga sat nearby, lost in thought, her face betraying the sadness she struggled to conceal. Thor noticed, approached Frigga, bowed his head.

"Mother. What ails you?" He asked.

Frigga took Thor's hand appreciatively.

"We did all this to ease Loki's pain," Frigga said. "And now he is worse off than ever; having once again had everything he ever wanted and then having it taken from him all over again."

"How is he?" Thor asked.

"He mourns for her." Frigga said. "He will need his friends and family now more than ever."

"I will always be at his side." Thor said.

Frigga understood, put her arm around Thor gratefully.

**Palace Balcony**

Loki stood alone on the balcony, lost in thought. Odin walked up behind him.

"You'll be a wise King." Odin said.

"I thought Thor was to be King?" Loki sighed.

"I do not recall making a decision one way or the other," Odin said tactfully.

"There will never be a wiser king than you. Or a better father." Loki said. "Very few can trick me. But you did and I thank you for it."

"I have much to learn. I know that now. But some day, perhaps, I will make you proud."

"You've already made me proud." Odin left, Loki consoled by his words.

**Rainbow Bridge**

Out of the broken, jagged Rainbow Bridge flows the Bifrost energy, drifting off into space.

Loki walked out to its edge, where Heimdall stood watch.

Loki stared out at the stellar void.

"Can you see her?" Loki asked.

Heimdall turned, gazed into the void. "Her light still burns brightly somewhere in this Universe. Fear not Loki. Your beloved will be reborn as she was the first time."

**Selvig Labs**

Through the window into Rei's lab, there is an enlarged illustration from her father's notebook pinned to a board. There is a computer terminal displaying a program clearly inspired by the illustration. The lab has been transformed into a well-funded research facility, abuzz with activity.

SHIELD scientists and agents work with impressive, state-of-the-art equipment.

Selvig orchestrated the process, giving instructions to the scientist. Rei was sitting at the front of the roof, working at a small, improvised workstation, notebook at hand, as always. She sets up an impressive, high-tech-device before her, which bore the "Stark Industries" logo.

The doorbell rang.

Rei slid down the roof and met with the man waiting at the door. "You're here in response to my resume."

"Yes I am," the man answered. "It was very persuasive, Miss Selvig. I would like you to continue your research at my lab as my new assistant."

"Thank you Mr. Stark," Rei said.

"Please, call me Tony." Tony laughed a little.

"Only if you call me Rei." Rei said seriously, shaking his hand.

**Deep Space**

Kuri ran through the black space. "I've gone so far... Where am I? It's dark, and cold... I'm running through deep space... This is scary. I should go back."

A figure appeared before here, all in white, pale as death. "Well..." she said. "Look who's come all the way out here... Seems you're lost."

"Who are you?" Kuri said.

"The spirit of light, the spirit of all that is good... Without saying farewell to your world, you can't come here to the end of the universe."

"Yes...I have said farewell to my world," Kuri said. "I am alone, lost and betrayed."

"I am what you have been seeking... I need you... Come with me." The pale figure held out her hand. "Come..." Kuri slowly reached for it. "Take my hand, and come with me."


	21. Paint It Black

And there came a day, a day unlike any other, when Earth's mightiest heroes and heroines found themselves united against a common threat. On that day, the Avengers were born-to fight the foes no single superhero could withstand! Through the years, their roster has prospered, changing many times, but their glory has never been denied! Heed the call, then-for now, the Avengers Assemble!"

**Throne Room, Space**

A figure wearing a long green gown with blonde hair and red tips known as Cosmos stood in front of a throne. Cosmos had not changed since she had lead the Jotuns into Asgard. Cosmos was unchanging.

"The Tesseract has awakened. It is on a little world. A human world. They would wield its power,..." Cosmos said.

Cosmos faced a dark shadow. It was Kuri, but she was changed, older.

Kuri looked like a more mature version of herself. However, in this form, her hair was longer and black as deep space. Her eyes were like black holes. She was the same height as Cosmos. She wore a long black dress with a slit on each side. The sleeve and chest portions were navy blue. The fabric of her skirt was also the same color as the shawl that she was usually seen with. Also, the sleeve cuffs and collars had diamonds on them. Her footwear consisted of satin high heels. She also wore black crystal earrings.

Kuri was handed the Chitauri Scepter, a long golden handle, fitted with a blue gem encircled with silver blades.

"But our ally knows its workings as they never will. She is ready to lead. And our force, our Chitauri, will follow." Cosmos said.

Tens of thousands of Chitauri stood ready in a seething mass of neat rows and columns...the ground simply quaked.

"The world will be hers. The universe mine. And the humans, what can they do but burn?" Cosmos said.

**SHIELD Project PEGASUS Facility**

Out in the Kansas desert, a remote research facility was in a state of panic. It's an evacuation. A swooping helicopter flew in.

Men in suits ran around in panic. Soldiers on foot jumped onto Humvees, accelerating the hell out of there. A voice bellowed from hidden loudspeakers.

**Helicopter Pad**

Standing a few yards from the landing pad, A Fed in a suit with badass shades, peered at the helicopter as it lands. This was SHIELD agent Phil Coulson.

Walking out of the helicopter is SHIELD agent Maria Hill, sexy, fierce and determined. Following her, SHIELD director Nick Fury climbed out. Hill and Fury approached Agent Coulson.

"How bad is it?" Fury asked.

"That's the problem, sir. We don't know." Coulson said.

**Facility Floor**

Agent Coulson lead Hill and Fury through the radiation section of the facility. Hundreds of technicians and other staff run around, taking only the essentials.

"Dr. Selvig read an energy surge from the Tesseract four hours ago." Coulson said.

"NASA didn't authorize Selvig to test phase." Fury said.

"He wasn't testing it, he wasn't even in the room. Spontaneous advancement." Coulson said.

"It just turned itself on?" Hill said.

"What are the energy levels now?" Fury said.

"Climbing. When Selvig couldn't shut it down, we ordered the evac." Coulson said.

"How long to get everyone out?" Fury said.

"Campus should be clear in the next half hour." Coulson said.

"Do better." Fury said.

**Heading Down to Radiation Facility Floor**

"Sir, evacuation may be futile." Hill said.

"We should tell them to go back to sleep?" Fury said.

"If we can't control the Tesseract's energy, there may not be a minimum safe distance." Hill said.

"I need you to make sure that PHASE 2 prototypes are shipped out." Fury said.

"Sir, is that really a priority right now?" Hill said.

"Until such time as the world ends, we will act as though it intends to spin on. Clear out the tech below. Every piece of PHASE 2 on a truck and gone." Fury said.

"Yes, sir." Hill turned to standing agents. "With me."

**NASA Space Radiation Facility, Vacuum Chamber**

Fury entered the lab facility where the Tesseract was being held by a compact muon solenoid coil chamber.

"Talk to me, doctor." Fury said.

Dr Erik Selvig emerged from behind the CMS machine, concerned. The Tesseract was glowing unusually brighter and flare rings shot out at random.

"Director." Selvig said.

"Is there anything we know for certain?" Fury said.

"Tesseract is misbehaving." Selvig said.

"Is that supposed to be funny?" Fury said.

"No, it's not funny at all. The Tesseract is not only active, she's...misbehaving." Selvig said.

"How soon until you pull the plug?" Fury said.

"She's an energy source. If we turn off the power, she turns it back on. If she reaches peak level..." Selvig said.

"We've prepared for this, doctor. Harnessing energy from space." Fury said.

"We don't have the harness. Our calculations are far from complete. Now she's throwing off interference, radiation. Nothing harmful, low levels of gamma radiation." Selvig said.

"That can be harmful. Where's Barton?" Fury said.

"The Hawk? Up in his nest, as usual." Selvig said.

Clint Barton, dressed in black tactical gear, was up on the railings watching them below, Fury calls Barton on his earpiece.

"Agent Barton, report." Fury said.

Barton rappelled down from the catwalk and walked up to Fury. They both walked around the facility in a discreet manner.

"I gave you this detail so you could keep a close eye on things." Fury said.

"Well, I see better from a distance." Barton said.

"Are you seeing anything that might set this thing off?" Fury said.

"Doctor, it's spiking again." A NASA scientist said to Selvig.

"No one's come or gone. It's oven is clean. No contacts, no I.M.'s. If there was any tampering, sir, it wasn't at this end." Barton said.

"At this end?" Fury said.

"Yeah, the cube is a doorway to the other end of space, right? The doors open from both sides." Barton said.

Dr Selvig clacked away at the keyboard and saw on the monitoring his worst nightmares. Suddenly- the Tesseract thundered and shook the entire facility. Big enough where both Agents Hill and Coulson could feel and they were at different ends of the facility.

The flaring rings and glows of the cube spouted out brighter and louder, like a boiling pot of water. The Tesseract's energy built up into a beam much like the Bifrost Bridge, which hit at the end of a platform that was wired to the CMS device. The great maelstrom beam fired the Tesseract energy. The beam then formed a vortex, which then opened up a portal.

A black hole was created. From the portal, the blackness of space, beautiful and mysterious, strewn with a billion stars appeared and a gust of blue energy clouds filled the room, blinding everyone.

The Tesseract's energy formed into a cloud that reached to the top the facility's vacuum chamber ceiling. It's abnormally quiet. Then... heavy breathing was heard from the platform. SHIELD guards slowly approach, weapons in hands. A figure was kneeling on the platform, smoke coming off it. It was Kuri, smiling wickedly. She raised her head, and frowned. She looked deep into the eyes of Fury, Barton and Selvig. She stood up, holding the scepter.

"Ma'am, please put down the spear!" Fury said.

With a wicked smirk, Kuri looked at her spear then suddenly points it at where Fury and Barton were standing and shot out a blue exploding light towards them. Barton tackled Fury and they both barely missed Kuri's fired shot.

Machine gun fire was shot at Kuri, but the bullets bounced off her. Kuri jumped high from the platform and attacked those firing at him.

In the blink of an eye, Kuri took down several guards with black orbs and energy blasts from the scepter. She stopped and waited to see who would attack her next.

Barton tried to stand up. Kuri quickly walked towards him. Barton raised his gun, but Kuri grabbed Barton's hand.

"You have heart." Kuri said.

Kuri pointed the head of her spear at Barton's head. Barton's eyes suddenly glowed BLACK. The ability to control Barton's mind was now in Kuri's hand. Barton put his piece away and stood straight.

As Kuri was busy using her abilities to control the minds of several SHIELD personnel, Fury took the Tesseract, placing it back into its case and tried to leave the lab.

"Please don't. I still need that." Kuri said.

"This doesn't have to get any messier." Fury said.

"Of course it does. I've come too far for anything else. I am Kurisuta Selvig, Demon of Fire and Chaos, and I am burdened with glorious purpose."

"Kuri?" Selvig said. "It's me! It's your father! What happened?"

"We have no quarrel with you." Fury said.

"An ant has no quarrel with a boot." Kuri said.

"You planning to step on us?" Fury said.

"I come with glad tidings, of a world made free." Kuri said.

"Free from what?" Fury said.

"Freedom and peace are only illusions. History is nothing but a repetition of wars. We are going to return the Earth to its proper course." Kuri said.

Kuri turned to face Selvig who was standing behind him and placed her spear against Selvig's heart.

Selvig's eyes glowed black.

"You will know true peace." Kuri said.

"Yeah, you say peace, I kind of think you mean the other thing." Fury said.

From the vacuum chamber ceiling, Tesseract's energy cloud rapidly built into what would be an implosion.

"Ma'am, Director Fury is stalling. This place is about to blow. Drop a hundred feet of rock on us. He means to bury us."

"He's right. The portal is collapsing in on itself. You got maybe two minutes before this goes critical." Selvig said.

"Well, then..." Kuri said.

Kuri, looked at Barton, who didn't even hesitate, shot Fury, who fell to the ground. Barton grabbed the case containing the Tesseract and left the lab with Kuri, Selvig and the other SHIELD personnel Kuri was controlling.

**PEGASUS Bunker, Entrance of Exiting Tunnel**

Kuri, Barton, Selvig and the other SHIELD personnel were in the parking lot of the facility, quickly gathering certain weapons. Agent Hill watched in confusion, referring to Kuri.

Barton pointed to Kuri's team. "Need these vehicles."

"Who's that?" Hill said.

"He didn't tell me." Barton said.

Agent Hill looked suspiciously at them as they got into the truck and turned to leave, as she was walking away...

"Hill, do you copy?!" Fury said through the walkie.

Kuri and Barton sharply looked at Agent Hill.

**Back at the Lab**

Fury was sitting up, pulling out the bullet, breathing heavily.

"Barton is..." Fury said.

**PEGASUS Bunker**

Suddenly, Hill turned to shoot at Barton, but Barton was already pointing his gun at her and starts shooting, he moved the driver's seat of the truck and drove off as Hill kept shooting.

**Back at the Lab**

Fury was holding his side, running.

"He's got the Tesseract! Track it down!" Fury said.

The energy was brewing a storm from the vacuum chamber ceiling.

**PEGASUS Bunker/Tunnel**

Agent Hill slipped into a jeep and followed after Barton's truck. Kuri's trucks screeched across the tunnel. Several SHIELD trucks pulled up to them. A drive-by shooting ensued.

Kuri, who stood on top of the bed of the truck, used her scepter and emitted energy blasts, flipping over SHIELD trucks.

They got in, the cars roar out after them. Agent Hill put herself at a distance.

**Facility Floor**

Fury raced out of the hallway, avoiding falling pipes. The entire facility was now in a full earthquake.

**Facility Floor, Elsewhere **

Agent Coulson and several SHIELD agents fell down the steps, dropping silver cases of information. They attempted to grab them, but...

"No! Leave it!" Coulson said.

They ran out of there like a bat from hell.

**PEGASUS Tunnel**

Agent Hill's Jeep roared out of a side of Barton's truck and pulled up alongside them on the left. She went way ahead and pulled her brake, swerving into a 360, facing Barton's truck and driving in reverse.

Barton's arms reached out the open window and opened fire. Agent Hill shot her windshield opening fire on Barton.

**Van**

Agent Coulson jumps into a SHIELD van.

"You're clear, sir! You need to go!" He said on his walkie.

**Helicopter**

Fury bolted out of the facility and jumped into a helicopter. The surface of the pad gave way, plunging the helicopter through the surface. But Fury's chopper barely made it out.

**PEGASUS Tunnel**

Still being chased, Barton pushed the pedal harder, which caused Agent Hill's jeep to wobble out and put her back behind.

**Radiation Facility, Vacuum Chamber**

The Tesseract's energy cloud now shrank into a small ball of white light. Then...

A cloud of blue light consumed the entire facility and parts of the desert. Fury watched from below, a rapid build-up into what would be an implosion. Several miles away, Agent Coulson's van felt a jolt of the Tesseract's blast wave. The entire facility swallowed into itself—a terrifying, unimaginable implosion.

**PEGASUS Tunnel**

The blast wave of the Tesseract caused the tunnel to cave in. Like an ocean wave, blinding crumbles of falling rock, fell onto Agent Hill's jeep, leaving her nearly trapped under this blanket of rock.

On the Barton's truck, they escaped the tunnel and drove into the desert landscape. Fury's helicopter roared over Barton's truck.

Kuri looked up.

From the chopper's door, it slid open and Fury stood there, holding a gun, shot at Barton's.

Kuri looked at Fury and in a fit of rage, pointed her scepter and shot out the blue light.

The chopper caught on fire, going down in a fiery ball. Fury jumped out and touched down onto the desert floor. The chopper barreled along the ground.

Fury, coming back to his senses, fired at Kuri, but they were too far and too late. Kuri looked back, smiling wickedly. Fury stood there, mind reeling. Then...

"Director? Director Fury, do you copy?" Coulson said in the walkie.

"The Tesseract is with the hostile force. I have men down. Hill?" Fury replied.

**PEGASUS Tunnel**

Agent Hill climbed out her jeep, which was sandwiched in, but luckily, not her.

"A lot of men still under, don't know how many survivors." Hill said.

**Cornfield**

"Sound the general call. I want every living soul not working rescue looking for that brief case." Fury said.

"Roger that." Hill said.

"Coulson, get back to base. This is a level seven. As of right now, we are at war." Fury said.

There was a silence.

"What do we do?" Coulson said.

Fury stood there. Thinking. He looked up. On his face was a sign of hope.


	22. Kitsune

**Solenski Plaza, 3rd Floor, Russia**

Out in the outskirts, near a railroad, a still in construction building was being occupied by Georgi Luchkov, a large, Russian general, along with his thugs.

A tall thug was in the middle of a brutal beating on Reiko Selvig, now going by Reiko, looking more mature, with her hair cut to her shoulders, and toned from training. He backhanded Reiko's face. She felt the pain, but did not breakdown.

Luchkov, smiling, walked up to her.

"This is not how I wanted the evening to go." Luchkov said in Russian.

"I know how you wanted this evening to go. Believe me, this is better." Reiko replied in Russian.

"I'd like to know why they sent you to carry out all of our shipments of Stark Industries Weapons technology." Luchkov said.

The tall thug rocked her chair back, balancing her off the edge of an open floor. Reiko was now scared.

"I thought General Soholob was in charge of the export business. Why is he exporting Stark Weapons?" Reiko asked.

"Soholob? Your reputation is quite the progression. The famous Kitsune. Nothing but a pretty face." Luchkov said.

"You really think I'm pretty?" Reiko asked.

Luchkov slowly walked over to a table filled with tools. He picked up a pair of pliers. The tall thug opened up her mouth wide open.

"Why don't you tell Stark, well," Luchkov said, then in English. "You may have to write it down."

Suddenly, the weaselly thug's cell rings. Confused, he answered.

"Ya?" The weaselly thug said and looked at Luchkov. "It's for you."

Luchkov took the phone, pissed.

"Who the hell is..." Luchkov said.

"You're at 114 Solenski Plaza, 3rd floor. We have an F22 exactly 8 miles out. Put the woman on the phone or I will blow up the block before you can make the lobby." Coulson said.

Luchkov placed the cell phone against Reiko's ear seeing how she was tied to a chair with her hands tied behind her back.

"We need you to come in." Coulson said.

"Are you kidding? I'm working!" Reiko said.

"This takes precedence." Coulson said.

"I'm in the middle of an interrogation and this moron is giving me everything." Reiko said.

"I don't give everything." Luchkov said.

Reiko gave him a look.

"Look, you can't pull me out of this right now." Reiko said.

"Reiko. Your sister's back." Coulson said.

Reiko paused.

"Let me put you on hold." Reiko said.

She nodded to Luchkov. As Luchkov came to take the phone off her, Reiko hit him with her leg and head butted him. She stood up elegantly and started attacking the the tall thug by kickboxing him in the face.

Still tied, she rolled over the weaselly thug after she tripped him.

She then stomped on the tall thug foot with peg of the chair, then knocked him out with her head.

She then flipped over and fell down hard on the weaselly thug, breaking the chair. She saw the tall thug stand.

Giving her momentum, she ran at him drop kicking him, fell down and flipped right back up, wrapped her legs around his neck and knocked him out cold.

She grabbed Luchkov, wrapped his leg around with a hanging chain and dropped him down the open floor, dangling. She picked up the phone and her heels.

"Where's Kuri now?" Reiko asked.

"We don't know." Coulson said.

"But she's alive." Reiko said.

"We think she's been brainwashed. I'll brief you on everything when you get back. But first, we need you to talk to the big guy." Coulson said.

"I've got a better idea," Reiko said. "I have to be with you when you talk to Stark, or he won't listen. As for the big guy, I've got a young trainee who is perfect for the job. Emotional control is her expertise."

"Another one of you and Stark's pet projects," Coulson said. "What's her name?"

"Billie Jenkins," Reiko said.


	23. Hulk

**Indian Slum**

A little girl ran through the crowd, trying to force a way through.

**Shack**

A tiny shack. The little girl ran up the steps, only to be stopped by an attending woman. Then, the little girl spotted him. Bruce Banner, their local doctor.

"What are doing here?! Get out! You shouldn't be here!" The attending woman said.

"I have to see the doctor! It's my father!" The little girl said.

"Calm down. What's wrong?" Banner said.

"My father..." the girl said.

Banner looked behind him seeing how the girl was staring at a few people, lying down, looking very sick.

"Is he like them?" Banner said.

The little girl held out all the money she had in the world.

"Please." The little girl said.

**Slums**

Banner and the little girl hastily ran nearly to the edge of town. The little girl got ahead of herself. Banner spotted local government car, he turned around, blocking any view of him.

**Little Girl's Shack**

Banner quickly followed the little girl inside her house. As he walked in, the little girl vanished in a shimmer of white lights.

"Should have got paid up front, Banner." Banner said to himself.

Billie Jenkins, a tall, slender blonde woman all in black, then appeared from behind the curtains. Banner turned around, quietly.

"You know, for a man who's supposed to be avoiding stress, you picked a hell of a place to settle." Billie said.

"Avoiding stress isn't the secret." Banner said.

Billie smiled gently. "I know that. Sorry about the cloak and dagger."

"You brought me to the edge of the city, smart. I uh... assume the whole place is surrounded?" Banner said.

"Just you and me." Billie said. "I'm not a spy. I'm more of a liaison."

"Who are you?" Banner asked.

"Billie Jenkins," Billie said. "I was asked to come here on behalf of SHIELD by my sponsor, Reiko."

"SHIELD. How did they find me?" Banner said.

"According to them, they never lost you, doctor. They've kept their distance, even helped keep some other interested parties off your scent." Billie said.

"Why?" Banner said.

"Nick Fury seems to trust you. But now I need you to come in." Billie said.

"What if I said no?" Banner said.

"I'll persuade you." Billie said.

"And what if the... other guy says no?" Banner said.

"You've been more than a year without an incident. I don't think you wanna break that streak." Billie said.

"I don't always get what I want." Banner said.

"Doctor, we're facing a potential global catastrophe." Billie said.

"Well, those I actively try to avoid." Banner said.

"This is the Tesseract. It has the potential energy to wipe out the planet." Billie said.

She showed him a photo of the Tesseract on her cell phone. Banner took a closer look.

"What does Fury want me to do? Swallow it?" Banner asked.

"Well, he wants you to find it. It's been taken. It emits a gamma signature that's too weak for us to trace. There's no one that knows gamma radiation like you do. If there was, that's where I'd be." Billie said.

"So Fury isn't after the monster?" Banner asked.

"Not that he's told me." Billie said.

"And he tells you everything?" Banner said.

"Talk to Fury, he needs you on this." Billie said.

"He needs me in a cage?" Banner said.

"No one's gonna put you in a..." Billie said.

"STOP LYING TO ME!" Banner shouted.

The entire house melts away revealing a secluded glen, with a calming waterfall and a garden.

"This..." Billie said. "Can be your happy place. You don't want to hurt me."

Banner looked surprised, and smiled. "I'm sorry, that was mean. I just wanted to see what you'd do. Why don't we do this the easy way, where you don't use your powers, and the other guy doesn't make a mess? Okay? Billie..."

Billie spoke into her earpiece, illusion not wavering for a moment. "Stand down. We're good here."

At last the illusion fell, revealing dozens of SHIELD agents surrounding the shack outside.

Banner looked at Billie, charming a smile at her.

"Just you and me?" Banner said.

Billie smirked. "But how do you know they're real?"


	24. Avengers Initiative

**SHIELD Analytical Room**

Fury is facing several large monitors as he was at conference with members of the World Security Council.

"This is out of line, Director. You're dealing with forces you can't control." A councilman said.

"You ever been in a war, Councilman? In a firefight? Did you feel an overabundance of control?" Fury said.

"You saying that this Kuri has declared war on our planet?" The councilman said.

"Kuri has been brainwashed." Fury said.

"She can't be working alone. What about the Asgardians?" A second councilman said.

"Our intelligence says, Loki and Thor are not hostiles. But they're worlds away, we can't depend on them to help. It's up to us."

"Which is why you should be focusing on phase 2, it was designed for exactly..." the councilman said.

"PHASE 2 isn't ready, our enemy is. We need a response team." Fury said.

"The Avengers Initiative was shut down." The councilman said.

"This isn't about The Avengers." Fury said.

"We're running the world's greatest covert security network and you're gonna leave the fate of human race to a handful of freaks." The councilman said.

"I'm not leaving anything to anyone. We need a response team. These people maybe isolated, unbalanced even, but I believe with the right push they can be exactly what we need." Fury said.

"You believe?" The second councilman said.

"War isn't won by sentiment, Director." The councilman said.

"No, it's won by soldiers." Fury said.


	25. Captain America

**Brooklyn Gym**

Somewhere in an old, almost WWII-esque boxing gym, Steve Rogers, a man out of time, the First Avengers, was pummeling a punching bag. With every swing, it was like a memory he was trying to fight off and repress.

**Hydra Base**

Captain America was running through the forest, dodging mortars, gunfire and the Tesseract's energy firearms.

"There's not enough time! I gotta put her in the water!" Steve said.

**Brooklyn Gym**

Steve's rage kept building as he punched the bag. It got harder...

**Horten , Red Skull's Ship**

Steve placed his compass with an image of a woman, Ava Nicolae. The time was here for him to crash the plane.

**Brooklyn Gym**

Steve closed his eyes went at the bag harder.

"You won't be alone." Ava said.

**Horten , Red Skull's Ship**

The Red Skull picked up the Tessaract.

**Brooklyn Gym**

Steve opened his eyes and tore the bag as the last memory kicked in.

**Project PEGASUS Antarctica **

"Oh my god!" A SHIELD scientist said.

A half frozen Steve Rogers was lying down on a medical slab. Two SHIELD scientists ran over hi-tech devices to see if his vitals are up. And it seemed...

"This guy is still alive!" The SHIELD scientist said.

**Brooklyn Gym**

Steve tore the bag open, off its chain, spilling out the sand. He stood, breathing hard, letting out 70 years of over repressed feeling.

After taking a few breathers, Steve picked up another punching bag, which was laying next another dozen bags. He hooked the bag up and started punching again.

Ava Nicolae, empath, another person out of time, stood in the doorway.

"Hello stranger," she said. "Trouble sleeping?"

"I slept for seventy years, Ava. I think I've had my fill." Steve said.

"Then you should be out, celebrating, seeing the world." Ava said. "With your girlfriend."

Steve stopped punching and walked over to the bench, unraveling the tape off his hands. He sat down.

"I went under, the world was at war, I wake up, they say we won. They didn't say what we lost." Steve said.

"I feel your pain," Ava said. "You know that."

"You here with a mission, Ava?" Steve asked.

"You know I am," Ava said. "I have to be loyal to SHIELD. They brought us back together, gave me a purpose."

"And now you're what," Steve said. "Trying to get me back in the world?"

"Trying to save it." Ava said.

Ava hands Steve a file on the Tesseract, along with other files on HYDRA'S projects.

"Hydra's secret weapon." Steve said.

"Howard Stark fished that out of the ocean when he was looking for you. He thought what we think, the Tesseract could be the key to unlimited sustainable energy. That's something the world sorely needs." Ava said.

"Who took it from you?" Steve said.

"She's called Kuri. She used to be human and now she's brainwashed. There's a lot we'll have to bring you up to speed on if you're in. The world has gotten even stranger than you already know." Ava said.

"At this point, I doubt anything would surprise me." Steve said.

"Ten bucks says you're wrong. There's a debriefing package waiting for you back at your apartment." Ava said.

Steve turned and picks up a punching bag and started walking out of the gym.

"Is there anything you can tell us about the Tesseract that we ought to know now?" Ava asked.

"You should have left it in the ocean." Steve said.


	26. Iron Man

**Ocean**

Out in the Atlantic Ocean, Tony Stark, in his Iron Man suit, was cutting a pipeline transport with a laser cutter coming from his hand. He then placed a stark energy reactor. It lights up. Iron Man rocketed out of the water and flew towards Stark Tower.

"You're good on this end. The rest is up to you." Tony said.

"You disconnected the transition lines? Are we off the grid?" Rei said on the other line.

**Inside the Suit**

Rei appeared on his HUD monster

"Stark Tower is about to become a beacon of self-sustaining clean energy." Tony said.

"Wow. So maybe our reactor takes over and it actually works?" Rei said.

"I assume. Light her up." Tony said.

As Iron Man flew to the Stark Tower Building, the power was switched on and the Stark sign lit up.

"How does it look?" Rei asked.

"Like Christmas, but with more... me." Tony said.

"Gotta go wider on the public awareness campaign. You need to do some press. I can do some more tomorrow. I'm working on the zoning for the next billboards." Rei said.

"Rei, you're killing me. Remember? Enjoy the moment." Tony said.

"Then get in here and I will." Rei said.

Tony arrived at his skyscraper penthouse and was in the process of taking off his Iron Man suit through a hi-tech gauntlet of gadgets.

"Sir, Agent Coulson of SHIELD is on the line." Jarvis said.

"I'm not in. I'm actually out." Tony said.

"Sir, I'm afraid he's insisting." Jarvis said.

"Close the line Jarvis. I got a date." Tony said.

**Tony's Penthouse**

Rei Selvig stared up at the monitors of the reactor device.

"Levels are holding steady... I think." Rei said.

"Of course they are, I was directly involved. Which brings me to my next question: how does it feel to be a genius?" Tony said.

"Well, ha, I really wouldn't know now, would I?" Rei said.

"What do you mean? All this came from you." Tony said.

"No. All this came from that." Rei said, pointing to the energy in his chest plate.

"Give yourself some credit, please. Stark Tower is your baby. Give yourself... twelve percent of the credit." Tony said.

"Twelve percent?" Rei said.

"An argument can be made for fifteen." Tony said.

"Twelve percent? For my baby?" Rei said.

"Well, I did do all the heavy lifting. Literally, I lifted the heavy things. And sorry, but the security snafu? That was on you." Tony said.

"Oooooh." Rei said.

"My private elevator..." Tony said.

"You mean OUR elevator?" Rei said.

"...was teeming with sweaty workmen. I'm going to pay for that comment about percentages in some subtle way later, aren't I? Tony said.

Rei poured herself and Tony a glass of champagne.

"Not gonna be that subtle." Rei said.

"I'll tell you what. Next building's gonna say 'Reiko' on the tower." Tony said.

"On the lease." Rei said.

"...Call your mom, can you bunk over?" Tony said.

"Sir, the telephone. I'm afraid my protocols are being overwritten." Jarvis said.

"Stark, we need to talk." Coulson said.

Tony picks up his phone and looks into it at Coulson.

"You have reached the life model decoy of Tony Stark, please leave a message." Tony said.

"This is urgent." Coulson said.

"Then leave it urgently." Tony said.

At that moment the elevator door opened and Coulson appeared.

"Security breach." Tony said, then to Rei. "That's on you."

"Good," Rei said. "I let him in."

"Mr. Stark." Coulson said.

"Phil! Come in." Rei said.

"Phil? Uh, his first name is Agent." Tony said.

"Come on in, we're celebrating." Rei said.

"Which is why he can't stay." Tony said.

"We need you to look this over." Coulson towards out a file towards Stark. "Soon as possible."

"I don't like being handed things." Tony said.

"That's alright, `cause I love to be handed things. So, let's trade." Rei said.

She passed her glass of champagne to Coulson and took the file from him, then took her champagne glass back from Coulson and passed the file over to Stark.

"Thank you." Rei said.

"Official consulting hours are between eight and five every other Thursday." Tony said.

"This isn't a consultation." Coulson said.

"Is this about The Avengers? Which I...I know nothing about." Rei said.

"The Avengers Initiative was scrapped, I thought. And I didn't even qualify." Tony said.

"I didn't know that either." Rei said.

"Yeah, apparently I'm volatile, self-obsessed, don't play well with others." Tony said.

"That I did know." Rei said.

"This isn't about personality profiles anymore." Coulson said.

"Whatever. Miss Selvig, got a minute?" Tony said.

Rei walks over to Tony who placed the files into his own databases.

"You know, I thought we were having a moment." Tony said.

"I was having twelve percent of a moment. This seems serious, Phil's pretty shaken." Rei said.

"How did you notice? Why is he Phil?" Tony asked.

"What is all of this?" Rei asked.

"This is, uh..." Tony said.

Tony expanded his arms and different profiles appear in holographic form floating in the air in front of Tony and Rei.

"This." Tony said.

Screens appeared of Captain America in action, the Hulk roaring as he attacked the army at Culver University, Thor and Loki fighting the Destroyer and another is of Kuri and the Tesseract, to which Stark and Rei look on in awe.

"You've got homework. You've got a lot of homework." Rei said.

"Well, what if I didn't?" Tony said.

"If you didn't?" Rei said.

"Yeah." Tony said.

"You mean if you finished?" Rei said.

Stark nodded his head.

"Well, um...then..." Rei whispered something in his ear. Tony gasped. Coulson looked away in embarrassment.

"Square deal. It's the last date." Tony said.

Rei kissed him.

"Work hard." Rei said.

As Rei left with Agent Coulson, Tony grabbed the Tesseract in holograph form, worried.


	27. Assemble

**Quinjet**

Inside the Quinjet, Steve was sitting down, holding a tablet, watching the footage of the Hulk's attack on the Army at Culver University.

"We're about forty minutes out from base, sir." The pilot said.

Agent Coulson stood up from his seat and walked over to Steve.

"So, this Doctor Banner was trying to replicate the serum that was used on me?" Steve said.

"A lot of people were. You were the world's first superhero. Banner thought gamma radiation might hold the key to unlocking Erskine's original formula." Coulson said.

On screen, The Hulk roared with fury as he slammed a jeep apart.

"Didn't really go his way, did it?" Steve said.

"Not so much. When he's not that thing though, guy's like a Stephen Hawking." Coulson said.

Steve looked confused.

"He's like a smart person. I gotta say, it's an honor to meet you, officially." Coulson said.

Steve smiled at Coulson.

"I sort of met you, I mean, I watched you while you were sleeping." Coulson said.

Steve looked down. He stood up, closes his laptop and walked to the side with Coulson following.

"I mean, I was... I was present while you were unconscious from the ice. You know, it's really, it's just a... just a huge honor to have you on board." Coulson said.

"Well, I hope I'm the man for the job." Steve said.

"Oh, you are. Absolutely. Uh... we've made some modifications to the uniform. I had a little design input." Coulson said.

"The uniform? Aren't the stars and stripes a little... old fashioned?" Steve asked.

"With everything that's happening, the things that are about to come to light, people might just need a little old fashioned." Coulson said.

Steve took in Coulson's sentiment.


	28. Plots

**Underground Lab**

Several soldiers under Kuri's mind control ran around, preparing to infiltrate whatever Kuri had planned. Kuri sat down, watching Selvig work with a CMS device. Kuri meditated, until...

**Throne Room**

...the scepter materializes her back into the throne room of Cosmos. Cosmos appeared from the steps.

"The Chitauri grow restless." Cosmos said.

"Let them go at themselves. I will lead them into glorious battle." Kuri said.

"Battle? Against the meager might of Earth?" Cosmos said.

"Glorious, not lengthy. If your force is as formidable as you claim." Kuri said.

"You question us? You question ME? I, who put the scepter in your hand, who gave you ancient knowledge and new purpose when you were cast out, defeated?" Cosmos said.

"I was in love! And I was betrayed! Marooned on Asgard!" Kuri said.

"Your ambition is little, born of childish need. We look beyond the Earth to greater worlds the Tesseract will unveil." Cosmos said.

"You don't have the Tesseract yet." Kuri said.

Cosmos ran over to attack him, but stopped as Kuri pointed her scepter.

"I don't threaten, but until I open the doors, until your force is mine to command, you are but words." Kuri said.

"You will have your war. If you fail, if the Tesseract is kept from us, there will be no realm, no barren moon, no crevice where he can't find you. You think you know pain? He will make you long for something as sweet as pain." Cosmos said.

Cosmos placed her hand on Kuri's head and transported her back to Earth. Kuri looked around, menacing.


	29. On the Way

**Helicarrier Landing Strip**

The quinjet landed down a massive battleship known as the Helicarrier.. It has two runways. One with direct access to a hangar at the rear is aligned along the spine of the vessel. Agent Coulson and Steve walk down the ramp, meeting up with Rei.

"Agent Kitsune. Captain Rogers." Coulson said.

"Ma'am?" Steve said.

"Hi." Rei said.

"They need you on the bridge. Face time." Coulson said.

"See you there." Coulson said.

Agent Coulson walks away leaving Steve with Natasha, walking towards the railing of the ship.

"There was quite the buzz around here, finding you in the ice. I thought Coulson was gonna swoon. Did he ask you to sign his Captain America trading cards yet?" Rei asked.

"Trading cards?" Steve asked.

"They're vintage, he's very proud." Rei said.

Without realizing, Banner didn't notice them walking as he was nervous. He moved around as people kept walking in his way.

"Dr. Banner." Steve said.

Steve walked up to Banner and shook his hands.

"Oh, yeah. Hi. They told me you'd be coming." Banner said.

"Word is you can find the cube." Steve said.

"Is that the only word on me?" Bruce said.

"Only word I care about." Steve said.

Banner took in the sentiment. "Must be strange for you, all of this."

"Well, this is actually kind of familiar." Steve said.

"Gentlemen, you may wanna step inside in a minute. It's gonna get a little hard to breathe." Rei said.

Suddenly the Helicarrier started shaking as it prepared to fly"sail."

"Is this is a submarine?" Steve said.

"Really? They wanted me in a submerged pressurized metal container?" Banner said.

They both moved closer to the edge of the Helicarrier. Four huge lift fans mounted on the sides started to lift into the air in flight. Steve watched in awe as banner smiled.

"Oh no. This is much worse." Banner said.

**Helicarrier Bridge**

The doors part and they entered the bridge of the ship a flurry of activity dozens of agents sat in front of their viewscreens.

Agent Hill shouted her instructs to leave. She turned to Nick Fury, who was at the command chair.

"We're at lock, sir." Hill said.

"Good. Let's vanish." Fury said.

**Sky**

The Helicarrier rose high into the heavens. Suddenly, the entire ship was covered in reflecting mirrors, which then camouflaged in the sky.

**Helicarrier Bridge**

Steve and Banner walked through the glorious, gleaming bridge, taking his position at the science console.

"Gentlemen." Fury said.

Steve gave Fury 10 bucks, referring to his earlier statement about never being surprised again. Fury walked over Banner and extended his hand. Banner, reluctantly shook it.

"Doctor, thank you for coming." Fury said.

"Thanks for asking nicely. So, uh... how long am I staying?" Banner said.

"Once we get our hands on the Tesseract, you're in the clear." Fury said.

"Where are you with that?" Banner said.

Nick Fury turned to Agent Coulson to explain, while Rei eyed an image of Clint Barton on a computer screen.

"We're sweeping every wirelessly accessible camera on the planet. Cellphones, laptops. If it's connected to a satellite, it's eyes and ears for us." Coulson said.

"That's still not gonna find them in time." Rei said.

"You have to narrow the field. How many spectrometers do you have access to?" Banner said.

"How many are there?" Fury said.

"Call every lab you know, tell them to put the spectrometers on the roof and calibrate them for gamma rays. I'll rough out a tracking algorithm based on cluster recognition. At least we could rule out a few places. Do you have somewhere for me to work?" Banner said.

"Agent Kitsune, would you show to his laboratory, please." Fury said.

Rei nodded and walks off, leading Banner down the hall.

"You're gonna love it, Doc. We got all the toys." Rei said.

**Underground Lab, Vacuum Room**

Selvig and several scientists worked around the CMS device. Barton walked in, holding a tablet.

"Put it over there!" Selvig said, then to Barton. "Where did you find all these people?"

"SHIELD has not shortage of enemies, Doctor." Barton said.

He held up a screen showing information on iridium.

"Is this the stuff you need?" Barton asked.

"Yeah, iridium. It's found in meteorites, it forms anti-protons. It's very hard to get hold of." Selvig said.

"Especially if SHIELD knows you need it." Barton said.

"Well, I didn't know!" Selvig said. He saw Kuri coming. "Hey! The Tesseract is showing me so much. It's more than just knowledge, it's... truth."

"I know. What did it show you, Agent Barton?" Kuri said.

"My next target." Barton said.

"Tell me what you need." Kuri said.

"I'll need a distraction." Barton said, grabbing his bow. "And an eyeball."

**Helicarrier Bridge**

As they were waiting to locate Kuri using satellite facial recognition, Coulson and Steve stood side by side, waiting.

"I mean, if it's not too much trouble." Coulson said.

"No, no. It's fine." Steve said.

"It's a vintage set. It took me a couple of years to collect them all. Near mint, slight foxing around the edges, but..." Coulson said.

"We got a hit. Sixty-seven percent match. Weight, cross match, seventy-nine percent." Agent Jasper Sitwell said.

"Location?" Coulson said.

"Stuttgart, Germany. 28, Konigstrasse. She's not exactly hiding." Sitwell said.

"Captain, you're up." Coulson said.

Steve nodded and left.


	30. Ugly Duckling

**Stuttgart Museum**

Kuri stood in front of the museum, dressed in a floor-length dark blue dress with white rose accents on the bodice at the top and at the waist. She had white bow sleeves and black heels. Her hair was done up in a bun.

She walked up to the entrance of the gala.

Inside, a lavished gala with an orchestra playing, is interrupted as the head doctor walked up to the mic.

**Helicarrier, Locker Room**

Steve walked into his own locker room. As he approached to the steel cabinet, the doors already revealed the updated Captain America uniform, along with the famous Shield. He stands in silence.

**Stuttgart Museum**

Outside the museum, German guards stood in their positions. One of them was standing on top of the roof, scoping. He then heard a THWACK!

He looked down. One of his guards was shot with an Arrow. He raised his gun. He was shot dead by an arrow. Fell down. Barton and his Crew arrived at the doors of the locked science building.

Barton looked at the retinal scanner. He pulls out a SHIELD eye scanner instrument.

**Stuttgart Gala**

Kuri looked from above the museum and descends down to where the head doctor was. As she made it down and near the stage, she opened her hands and an orb of clear light appeared. It grew and grew and then popped!—exploding lights all over the gala.

Thinking it was part of the show, the crowd clapped and cheered, dazzled. But the longer they watched, the more dazzled they became, until the whole throng was hypnotized.

Kuri pulled the doctor aside into a hallway and knocked him out with a small black orb. She then opened his eye and scanned it with a foreign instrument.

**Stuttgart Museum**

Suddenly, from Barton's instrument, a holographic eye of the head doctor appeared and the image of the doctor appeared on screen.

The doors to the facility opened. Barton walked in and found in a cabinet, a glass thermos with a cylinder of iridium.

**Stuttgart Gala**

Kuri raises her hands, about to explode the orbs and send fire raining down on all of the hypnotized patrons when Captain America arrived! He dove in just in time and blocked the blast with his Shield, knocking down Kuri and breaking her spell on the crowd. Chaos ensued as they began running for their lives.

"You know, the last time I was in Germany and saw someone standing above everybody else, we ended up disagreeing." Captain America said.

"The soldier. A man out of time." Kuri said.

"I'm not the one who's out of time." Captain America said.

From above Captain America, the Quinjet arrived. A machine gun was pointed towards Kuri.

"Sister, drop the weapon and stand down." Rei said.

Kuri sent a blast of blue from the scepter at the Quinjet. Rei maneuvered it just in time, giving Captain America the time to throw his shield at Kuri. They both began to fight.

Kuri blasted a black orb at Captain America, knocking him to the ground. Captain America then threw his shield, but Kuri swatted it way. Captain America was knocked down by Kuri. Standing over him, she pointed the scepter's tip on his helmet.

Captain America flipped and knocked her out with his leg. Kuri grabs him and flipped him over.

**Quinjet**

"The guy's all over the place." Rei said.

Suddenly, AC/DC's "Shoot to Thrill" overdrove the Quinjet's speakers.

"Agent Kitsune, did you miss me?" Iron Man said.

Both Captain America and Kuri looked up at the sky. Tony flew over in his Iron Man suit and blasted Kuri right back to the ground. Iron Man touched down. He stood up and pulled out every piece of weaponry the suit had.

"Make your move, Ugly Duckling."

"Thought we agreed not to call my sister that." Snapped Rei over the speaker.

"C'mon, she's so obviously nothing like you that the nickname fits." Iron Man argued.

"Enough!" Kuri put up her hands and surrendered.

"Good move." Iron Man said.

"Mr. Stark." Captain America said.

"Captain." Iron Man said


	31. Reunion

**Quinjet**

Rei watched the skies. Thunder. Coming out of nowhere. Fury spoke over her headset.

"Said anything?" Fury asked.

"Not a word." Rei said.

"Just get her here. We're low on time." Fury said.

With Kuri tied up and cuffed to her seat, Tony and Steve watched from a distance, whispering.

"I don't like it." Steve said.

"What? Rock of Ages giving up so easily?" Tony said.

"I don't remember it being ever that easy. This guy packs a wallop." Steve said.

"Still, you are pretty spry, for an older fellow. What's your thing? Pilates?"

"What?" Steve said.

"It's like calisthenics. You might have missed a couple things, you know, doing time as a Capsicle." Tony said.

Steve looked at Tony, finally meeting his ego match.

"Fury didn't tell me he was calling you in." Steve said.

"Yeah, there's a lot of things Fury doesn't tell you." Tony said.

Thunder and Lightning nearly hit the jet, making it shake violently.

"Where's this coming from?" Rei said.

Thunder rumbled overhead. Kuri stared out the window intently.

"What's the matter? Scared of a little lightning?" Steve asked.

"I'm not overly fond of what follows." Kuri said.

Outside the jet a blinding light hit the jet. The Mighty Thor. Thor opened the ramp and grabbed Kuri by the throat and flew out. Steve and Tony were left dumbstruck. Tony put the Iron Man helmet on.

"Now there's that guy." Iron Man said.

"Think the guy's a friendly?" Captain America said.

"Doesn't matter. If he frees Kuri or kills her, the Tesseract's lost." Iron Man said.

Tony turned and got ready to jump off the jet to chase after Thor.

"Stark, we need a plan of attack!" Captain America said.

"I have a plan. Attack." Iron Man said.

Iron Man jumped out of the jet and chased after Thor. Captain America grabbed a parachute to follow.

"I'd sit this one out, Cap." Rei said.

"I don't see how I can." Captain America said.

"These guys come from legends, they're basically gods." Rei said.

"There's only one God, ma'am. And I'm pretty sure he doesn't dress like that." Captain America said.

Captain America jumped out of the jet.

**Mountain Ledge**

Somewhere out in the European mountains, Thor threw Kuri into the side of the mountain. He raised the mighty hammer, Mjolnir, when Loki appeared in between them.

"LEAVE US!" He shouted with all the power he had. "The fault for her errs is mine brother. Let me be the one to bring her down."

"Very well," Thor said, standing down.

Loki looked down at the woman he loved, who he thought to be dead and was unhappy to see her alive in this fashion.

"Where is the Tesseract?" Loki asked.

"I missed you too." Kuri laughed. "Oh, you should thank me. With the Bifrost gone how much dark energy did the Allfather have to muster to conjure you here? Your precious Earth. A place you couldn't return me to?"

Loki sheathed Excalibur. He pinned down Kuri.

"I thought you dead." Loki said, pain in his voice.

"Did you mourn?" Kuri mocked.

"Of course I did," Loki shook.

Loki let go of Kuri, who walked away from him, causing an even bigger wedge between them.

"We were in love," Loki said. "I thought you'd want to stay in Asgard by my side."

Kuri rounded on him. "You thought it love when you broke the Bifrost? Stranding me? Keeping me from my sister, from my family?"

"So you take the world we love as recompense for your imagined slights. No, the Earth is under my protection, Kuri," said Thor, speaking up for the first time.

"And you're doing a marvelous job with that. The humans slaughter each other in droves, while you idly threat. I mean to rule them. And why should I not?"

"You once loved this world," Loki said. "You once loved all things. Now you echo darkness and your heart is empty."

Angrily, Kuri shoved Loki to the side. She walked back up to the ledge. Turned around.

"I've seen worlds you've never known about! I have grown, in my exile! I have seen the true power of the Tesseract, and when I wield it..." Kuri said.

"Who showed you this power? Who controls the would-be-queen?" Thor said.

"That's not what this is about!" Kuri said. "This is my revenge!"

"Not here! You give up the Tesseract! You give up this poisonous dream! You come home!" Loki said.

"Your home, not mine!" Kuri shouted. "I don't have it. You need the cube to get home, but I've sent it off I know not where."

Kuri opened her hands and a black orb appeared. Mjölnir flew into Thor's grasp. Loki drew Excalibur.

"Kuri please..." Loki attempted.


	32. Mountainside Battle

Thor was knocked off the mountain by Iron Man who tackled him in mid-flight.

Loki took a protective stance in front of Kuri, who fired a black orb at his back. "I don't need you to protect me, traitor."

The Loki on the ground vanished, and Loki behind her gripped her hands and forced them behind her back, binding them. "Your sorcery is limited to your hands, my love. Just stand and watch."

Thor and Iron Man crashed into the forest. Thor rolled himself up. Iron Man was still standing, but kept his distance. The helmet opened up.

"Do not touch me again!" Thor said.

"Then don't take my stuff." Tony said.

"You have no idea what you're dealing with." Thor said.

"Shakespeare in the park? Doth mother know you weareth her drapes?" Tony said.

"This is beyond you, metal man." Thor said.

"He gives up the Cube, he's all yours. Until then, stay out of my way...tourist." Tony said.

The Iron Man helmet clamped up and he walked away. In one quick move, Thor pulled Mjölnir, threw it, and knocked Iron Man clear across into a tree.

"Okay." Tony said.

From the mountain side, Loki watched in amusement, holding Kuri at bay. Thor raised his hand. Mjölnir flew back to his hand. Thor swung the hammer, summoning a ray of energy.

Iron Man stood up and from his hand boosters, a blast of energy knocked the Mighty Thor on his mighty ass. Iron Man flew back up and knocked Thor into a tree.

Thor, kneeling on the ground, pulled Mjölnir to his hand, raised it to the skies and pulled in lightning and thunder! Thor pointed the hammer at Iron Man and the outpouring of bolts lightning increased in intensity. Iron Man fell back.

"Power at 400% capacity." Jarvis said.

"How about that?" Tony said.

Iron Man fired away from his hand boosters, pushing Thor to his knees. Both Thor and Iron Man flew towards each other and met in the middle and ascended up.

The two battled. Iron Man grasped Thor, elbowing him and smashing him into the side of a mountain.

Thor leapt off the mountain and took Iron Man with him.

Thor and Iron Man crashed right back down, smashing down every tree possible. Iron Man yanked Thor right up. Thor grabbed both hand booster and began to crush them. Tony quickly charged up as much energy as he could and shot energy in Thor's face. Thor fell back, losing his stance. Iron Man headbutted Thor with his gold-titanium alloy helmet. Thor headbutted him and sent Iron Man across the forest.

Iron Man boostered up and flew back at Thor, grabbing him by the arm and cape and swung him into another tree. Thor looked up, ready. Thor ran with all his patience out the window. Iron Man swung and missed, giving Thor the momentum to grab him, lift him and smash him down hard.

Thor summoned back Mjölnir to his hand. Just as he was about to put the hammer down, Iron Man used his hand boosters to skid across the ground and trip Thor over. Standing up, Thor looked for him but from behind him, Iron Man crashed into his back. Thor stood facing Iron Man. Ready to pounce...

Captain America's shield ricocheted off both Thor and Iron Man, stopping them. They looked up and see Captain America standing on top of a fallen tree with the shield back in hand.

"Hey! That's enough!" Captain America came down and looked at Thor. "Now, I don't know what you plan on doing here."

"I've come here to put an end to Kuri's schemes!" Thor said.

"Then prove it! Put the hammer down." Captain America said.

"Um, yeah, no! Bad call! He loves his hammer!" Iron Man said.

Thor backhanded Iron Man with Mjolnir. Thor, losing all tolerance raised the hammer.

"You want me to put the hammer down?" Thor said.

Thor leapt high into the air, raising the hammer. Captain America crouched down and held up his shield. Thor brought that hammer down onto the shield and a massive implosion of light reacted to the vibranium shield creating a massive shockwave that blew up anything within a mile.

Iron Man stood up, looking around. Lying right next to him was Captain America, who never took his eye off Thor. Thor looked at both men.

"Are we done here?" Captain America said.


End file.
